Secrets should never be forgotten
by Turbanator
Summary: FLCL Evangelion Crossover. Chapter 16 uploaded! Strange readings are detected in Mabase, and NERV heads out to investigate. What they find there will astound them, as Medical Mechanica step up their attacks on a whole new front...
1. Prologue

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Secrets should never be forgotten…

Chapter 1

Prologue

2015, sometime during summer

Tokyo-3

It was another fairly normal day within the city boundaries of Tokyo-3. The sun shone, a light breeze scattered some leaves around the streets, people milling about their daily lives, all was calm. Life here seemed to merge seamlessly with the constant attacks from the mysterious creatures known as the Angels. The public of course knew nothing of these beings; just that they had to be evacuated when the warning klaxons went off. 

The people who knew always feared the next alarm. NERV, the agency designed to counter the offensive of these Angels, had at its disposal the use of large mecha known as Evangelions, piloted by fourteen-year-old children. One such pilot, Shinji Ikari, was currently at a loss. He hated the alarms, it meant that he would have to step into that thing again, Eva Unit-01, knowing full well that he was only there because of his unique ability to pilot that particular Evangelion. 

He sat at his desk alone. His friends had left Tokyo-3, Touji Suzahara was in hospital still, but transferred to another city, Kensuke Aida had left also, his father telling him to leave the city now before it was too late. The class was now vastly more empty than usual, a resilient few decided to stay. The Second Child, Sohryu Asuka Langley, had become more hostile to Shinji since her incident with the fifteenth Angel; in fact she began to despise everyone around her, especially Ayanami Rei, the First Child, who had saved her life from that Angel. _Rei… _She had somehow survived the self-destruction by Unit-00 with a few scratches, but something else was bothering him. He now knew what she was, a clone made by his father, the sheer essence of the dummy plug system. What was she to him now? He looked at her for a few seconds, but she was staring out of the window, otherwise preoccupied. A shadow crept across his table; he glanced up and inwardly flinched as he saw was Asuka. She then began a tirade of insults, mostly involving him and 'Wondergirl', as she liked to call Rei. This was interrupted by the emergency klaxon. The class was cleared out within seconds.

Resigned to his fate, Shinji picked up his school bag and walked towards the exit, onto NERV. He did not bother to catch up to Asuka who was marching on in front of him, nor did he try and slow down to move alongside Rei who remained cool throughout. They all made their way to one of the NERV entrances, conveniently located near to the school. Asuka slid her card through the slot first, walking past the Section 2 agent into the specially designed lift, Shinji and Rei following not long after. The ride down to the Geofront was deathly silent, Rei had nothing to say since it was not related to orders, Asuka was fuming inside at having to wait for Shinji, and Shinji was afraid to speak up for fear of Asuka hitting him in anger. 

****

Command Deck

"What do you mean you don't know what it is?!" Misato had barely a night's sleep since Unit-00 destroyed itself along with a large portion of Tokyo-3. 

"The Magi cannot say…" Maya relayed the results that the three supercomputers calculated. 

"Is the pattern fluctuating?" Misato asked fearfully. The last time an Angel's pattern changed was when Shinji almost died. 

"No…" Checking the monitors again, Maya clarified, "No, they are definitely not. However there does not appear to be a pattern associated with this energy output. There is no AT-Field detected either."

"Where was it located again? We need to get our bearings on the object." Misato relaxed a little as the large map appeared on the main viewer. Two red circles indicated Tokyo-3 and the energy output respectively.

"According to our readings," Makoto typed in a few commands, "the town of Mabase seems to be the source of the disturbance."

"Destination?" Misato spoke softly this time.

"Unknown, but it is not heading towards us." Makoto spoke back. 

"Magi probability that it's an Angel?" 

"The Magi are withholding judgement given the lack of variables."

Misato furrowed her brow. _An object that is not heading to Tokyo-3 is detected by the Magi as a potential threat, which in itself is unusual. However it does not possess the typical properties of Type Blue blood that Angels do, although that could change considering the last Angel. I guess it wouldn't hurt to send one Evangelion there to scout out… _

Turning to the Sub-Commander, and trying not to be intimidated by him, she spoke up, "Sir, permission to have Unit-01 flown over to the town of Mabase to check out the disturbance?"

Fuyutsuki stood there, unsure of what to say. "I cannot make a decision like this lightly, risking the protection of NERV Headquarters by taking away the only available defence…"

"Permission granted." The figure of Gendo Ikari approached the front and spoke down to Misato, "Although the risk of Unit-01 going berserk may be high, the risk these new enemies possess is higher."

"Ryoukai." Turning to the NERV staff on her level she began issuing orders. "Have Shinji-kun taken to the VTOL Launch Pad 2 along with Section 2 agents. Remove the restraints on Eva Unit-01 and send it to the Evangelion ATU (Airborne Transport Unit). Have a Mobile Command VTOL meet us on VTOL Launch Pad 2 in fifteen minutes, then join me there."

Misato stood back and watched as Maya, Makoto and Shigeru relay the orders to the relative divisions. Gendo sat there watching the proceedings, his hands interlocked beneath his nose. Fuyutsuki leant over and spoke to Gendo in hushed tones. 

"Why the sudden change of heart Ikari?" Gendo remained silent. "Unit-01 is still unstable since the incident with the fourteenth Angel, the only reason you'd change your mind is if…" 

Realisation suddenly dawning upon him, Fuyutsuki stood up and smirked. "So, the old men are worried are they?"

"Yes." Gendo replied, with a hint of mirth in his tone of voice, "According to their scenario, this wasn't supposed to happen. As you know, they fear irregularities and conflicts, anything that contradicts the Dead Sea Scrolls."

"How on Earth did you manage to get their blessing over the release of Unit-01?" Fuyutsuki was interested at this point.

"By mentioning that Instrumentality might be halted by these new foes." A sadistic smirk appeared on Gendo's face as Fuyutsuki chuckled to himself. 

"I see… threaten them with what they fear most of all, and even the old men would crumble." He looked down at Gendo, "I assume you will be waiting here to hear of the results?"

"Yes, but I must retire to my office for some business." With that he stood up. "I leave the rest in your hands Fuyutsuki." He then left the command deck and made his way to his office. 

****

14 minutes later

VTOL Launch Pad 2

"Where is Mabase Misato?" Shinji was looking at a large map of Japan (2010 edition Post Second Impact), the wind making it harder to read. 

Pointing over his shoulder, she indicated a region that managed to survive the sudden rise in the sea levels. It already existed as a town before then, but began to grow as more people moved to higher land. An unremarkable town, with no distinguishing features according to the map. 

Watching from a distance, Asuka began to grind her teeth as she saw Shinji standing there looking down at the map with an empty expression on his face. _Baka Shinji, why does he continue to pilot if it hurts him? _She then stopped, knowing that she was the same as him. Taking one last glimpse of him, she turned away to go down the stairs, back into the Geofront.

Shinji continued to read the map whilst Misato was barking down a phone asking where the VTOL was. Maya was typing furiously on a laptop computer over some more updates of what was happening in Mabase. Makoto was relaying some more information to the Eva Unit retrieval team, naming some weapons Misato thought would be appropriate for this occasion. At last the VTOL had arrived, a minute late, which by Misato's standards was very late. After giving the pilot a verbal beating, and sweatdrops from everyone else in the aircraft, they took off, the Eva ATU close behind them, flying high above Tokyo-3 before they set off for Mabase. 


	2. Arrival at Mabase...

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Secrets should never be forgotten…

Chapter 2

Arrival at Mabase

20 minutes later

Somewhere between Mabase and Tokyo-3

"Pilot? How long until our arrival?" Misato spoke into the intercom. 

"Not long now, we should be able to see it very soon." He replied.

"Ryoukai." She turned to Shinji sat beside her. "Shinji-kun, how are you?"

Seeing the same look on his face that he has each time he is asked to pilot, she smiles compassionately. "Don't worry Shinji-kun, you won't need to pilot for long, rumour has it that the Angels will soon leave us alone." This didn't make him any happier. "Remember one thing though," he turned to face her, "you still have value beyond being a pilot of Eva, in my eyes at least. Don't ever think yourself to be less than others, or else you will not be able to make life enjoyable for yourself." With this he managed to crack a smile, making Misato beam back at him. 

"Mabase straight ahead." Everyone wearing intercoms in the aircraft heard the pilot's voice. 

Misato turned to look out of the window to see nothing but a huge building. 

"Wh… What is that?!"

"I… I've never seen anything like it…" Maya gasped. Everyone was speechless as they saw the size of what had to be the largest building constructed in the known world. 

The VTOL pilot veered around the building only to be faced with a large mecha, wearing what seemed to be an overcoat holding a shotgun in two arms. 

"Target sighted! Move back! We're going to set ourselves down away from here!" The pilot was slightly edgy as he moved the VTOL aircraft to a safe distance away, far behind the large building, the Eva ATU landing closely behind it. 

****

Two minutes later

"Okay Shinji-kun, you know what to do, try not to aggravate it, and if need be try and move it away from the buildings."

"Hai…" He looked at his battery life and was tad relieved of seeing the dashes instead of numbers, meaning that the S2 Organ Unit-01 ingested was indeed producing its own power. 

"Take the pistol with you, we don't want there to be any civilian casualties. This isn't Tokyo-3, people haven't been evacuated here. Any more destructive than this and we risk large-scale damage. If you run out of ammo you can always use the Progressive Knife."

"Hai…" Pressing the right control lever he willed the Eva into picking up the pistol lying there beside him, and after some technicians had finished filling up the clip, he loaded it into the gun. 

Misato turned to Maya. "Any news from the Magi as to what it is yet?"

"No, they're still unsure." She replied somewhat shocked that the supercomputers could still not understand it. 

Turning to Makoto she continued, "Status of the target?" 

"Holding steady but it seems to be turning its back on us, away from the large construction." He replied, reading the details of the satellite image he was receiving. 

"Okay Shinji-kun," She moved her hand to the microphone by her mouth, "Now is your chance, go to it!"

"Hai…"

Clutching the pistol with both hands, Unit-01 pressed its back to the building, facing the command team. Edging itself to the left, Shinji managed to make it look around the corner without being seen. However, he was more shocked by the fact that it was shooting at something. Noticing some object moving around in the sky at a high speed he zoomed in on the image to see what appeared to be a woman wearing a bunny outfit on a flying guitar. Sweatdropping, he saw that it was firing bombs at the large mecha from a child's catapult. Unsure if he was seeing things he withdrew and reopened communications.

"Misato… did I just see what I thought I saw?" The viewscreen in the entry plug showed Misato gaping at the same images he saw being replayed over and over.

"H… Hai…" That was all she could say, her eyes wandering back to those images. 

Maya was working away furiously in the background. _She's probably trying to figure out if my viewer is malfunctioning. _Taking a few bold steps around the corner, he saw the mecha still firing at the woman. She seemed to be avoiding all its shots until she got too confident and ended up inside the barrel as it fired, guaranteeing a hit. A building was destroyed as it shot straight into it to make sure she was shot. Shinji was shocked. _A whole building destroyed? How many lives have been lost now? _He was about to shoot it before another object entered his field of vision. Focussing on the new entrant he saw that it was a red robot, again flying, wearing a green cloak, and now the woman was on it still firing at the large mecha. Suddenly, the red robot transformed into a large cannon, and fired from behind the mecha, piercing its overcoat. Shinji looked on in amazement as the bullet re-entered the red robot. However the second shot did not hit; as it was falling the larger mecha fired on the exact trajectory and knocked the projectile off course, somewhere into the city. Enraged the woman flew at the mecha with her guitar, before it did something none of them could have expected. Falling, its overcoat fell open revealing five long appendages, each wielding a weapon. Unable to do anything but watch, Shinji looked on as each weapon focussed on the woman and fired at once, creating a huge explosion. 

Shinji was shaking; he hadn't seen such destruction since Unit-00… _ No! I can't think of that right now! _"Misato!"

"Shinji-kun! Take it out of the city now!" She replied immediately, forgetting the image of the flying woman for the sake of lives. 

Running in, dropping the pistol, Unit-01 grabbed a hold of the mecha and threw it away from the city, kicking it for good measure. It rolled over a few times before coming to a stop; Shinji picked up the pistol again while it was incapacitated. The mecha picked itself up and turned its red eye (well, Shinji assumed to be an eye) to wards Shinji. In doing so, he saw that an insignia was on its head, in the form of a letter 'M' above another 'M'. The mecha was hesitant; it was watching Unit-01 and the city with equal intent. Turning to the city it began to lurch towards it.

"NO!" Firing four shots he managed to halt its progress, the bullet holes visible through the overcoat. 

The mecha's eye glowed brighter for a second and revealed two arms, one with a shotgun, the other a pistol. Without a thought, it began to fire at Shinji relentlessly, forcing him to be moved back. 

"Shinji-kun, use your AT-Field!" Misato screamed over the communications viewer. 

Willing it to be true, he was surprised to see that none of the bullet and shells could penetrate the AT-Field. _Is this creature really not an Angel? Their power could break through easily… _Whilst he had the upper hand he began to unload the clip into the mecha. After having fired the remaining eight bullets, no discernible effect had been made to the enemy apart from more holes and some peripheral damage to the outer face of it. Removing the Progressive Knife from its holder he was about to jump in to attack before a red object flew in above his head and then ploughed through the mecha's head, sending bits of shrapnel and machinery everywhere. The mecha, now up in the air, could do nothing as the red object drilled through the heart of it, even more machinery flying out. Shinji focussed on the red object to see that it was the red robot, now alone as it continued to fly into the city, its job undoubtedly complete. Walking over to the still mecha, Shinji looked at some of the machinery scattered on the ground. Noticing that one piece was moving away from him, he immediately stepped on it, to stop it from escaping into the city. Looking up again, his heart froze, as what now stood there wasn't in fact a mecha, but a giant hand poised to grab something, since it solidified into what appeared to be stone. Turning around, he saw the retrieval teams drive over to help him out, but he saw the large building in a whole new light.

"An iron?!?"

-------------

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Author's Notes

Okay, my first crossover fic. Not very good so far on the whole FLCL side of it, but I hope to be able to merge the two universes without any major cracks appearing. In case you didn't catch it from the first chapter, this is set in the period between the death of the 16th Angel and the arrival of the 17th Angel in NGE, and during/after the battle with the fifth Medical Mechanica robot, episode 5, of FLCL. 

Soon to come (not necessarily the next episode): NERV sets out to find out who the mysterious people were in order to find out how they came to possess such power. SEELE ponders over these events, as does Medical Mechanica. 


	3. Lost and Found

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Secrets should never be forgotten…

Chapter 3

Lost and Found

Next Day

Tokyo-3

NERV Headquarters

"So you're telling me you saw this woman flying?" Gendo spoke calmly.

"Yes sir." Misato replied. They were in his office, her debriefing him of all the details. "However I could only see what Unit-01 could see. I'm sure you already have the visual at hand sir."

"You assume correctly Katsuragi-san." He smirked under his hands. 

"The other unknown is the robot sir." She began to read from a file detailing all they could gather from the visual link. "From what we can tell, it doesn't seem to have any human pilot, its frame is too thin for that. Its form of propulsion is as yet unknown, and as we could see for ourselves, its offensive weaponry is very powerful, managing to completely disable a mecha of that size."

"From what I was given, the larger mecha didn't seem to have any effect on Unit-01 when the AT-Field was up." 

"No sir, it definitely does not appear to be an Angel. It relied upon conventional weaponry, which was completely nullified by the AT-Field." She flicked through more notes, "It seemed fairly competent at using these forms of attack, but made no move into close combat with Unit-01."

"I see. The report also mentions that there was no pilot of the mecha." 

"That is correct sir, we currently have some NERV technicians and the teams that usually remove the evidence of Angel activity in Tokyo-3 looking over the remnants of the mecha." She paused slightly now, reading over the final page. "One disturbing fact is that the mecha was originally shaped in the form of a giant hand, and now there seem to be very few mechanisms left within it. The material has changed to that of stone, however it feels like skin."

Gendo was silent at this. Such abilities had not been heard of. "Your opinion of the unknown persons involved in this battle Katsuragi-san?"

"I reserve my full judgement for the time being, however I feel that they bear no animosity to NERV, or at the very least, Unit-01." She stopped to gather up a bit more courage. "Their somewhat… unique… abilities may make them an enemy to those who fear such things. Personally I believe that they may prove useful in our battle against the Angels, it's better to have them on our side than against us."

Gendo began to think. _I know what she means, I do not like the fact that they could fly of their own free will, and if I'm were worried then SEELE would be livid. However, she makes a worthwhile point. _"Very well Katsuragi-san, I will give you permission to locate these individuals. Whatever you wish to do with them from that point on is your decision."

"Ryoukai!" Misato saluted him.

"Dismissed."

"Sir!" With that she left the office. 

****

Meanwhile, the outskirts of Mabase

The giant hand stood there, waiting, poised to grab something. NERV technicians were swarming around the area, removing samples for testing. Others were merely marvelling at its construction. However, they were agitated by the sudden release of steam that emanated from the giant building, some of the crew having to move out quickly since they were very close to the building. A few Section 2 agents went to the location to find out what the meaning of this was. Two security guards there told them that the manufacturing plant always performed this function at the same time every day. They also stated that it belonged to Medical Mechanica. 

NERV found that they weren't the only people interested in the giant hand. There was another group of military personnel there, examining the wreckage that was released through the hole in the hand. The two groups came together, each demanding to know why the other was there. NERV producing identification and their clearance rating, but the other, smaller military produced a rating that outclassed them. However for the sake of diplomacy, they decided to both look at the wreckage and the hand. Information on both sides however, was not willingly dispensed. 

At the remaining wreckage, two people were conversing.

A red haired man wearing sunglasses spoke up " Kitsurubami, do we have any idea as to what the Terminal Core looks like?" 

"Yes sir," The dark skinned woman with blond hair brought up a pages of schematics, "According to this, we have found it." She pointed to a large crater in the earth, shaped in the form of Unit-01's foot. The red haired man looked in to see, amongst some more shrapnel, a small object that resembled a microchip, completely flattened. 

"I see…" He quirked one of his large eyebrows, and looked at the larger robot, "So this means that Medical Mechanica can no longer activate this robot." He sighed. "It was a good job that NERV stepped in and destroyed the Terminal Core before it had a chance to reassimilate itself."

Kitsurubami looked at the large robot too, "What about the other robot? Who controls it?"

"I don't know," He admitted, "but I have a feeling that Atomsk has most of the blame in this matter." He growled a bit, "Not as much as Raharu, I told her it was foolish to take it on alone."

"Still, it is destroyed now isn't it?" Kitsurubami tried to lighten the mood, "Surely there's no need to worry."

"I doubt it, Medical Mechanica will just send more robots through the open NO channel, via that boy." He smirked whilst looking at the NERV technicians, "I also feel that we will have to share our space with NERV. They have become very interested in this all of sudden, so we will have to get used to their interference."

No one spoke any more as they watched the steam leak out from beneath the Medical Mechanica plant. 

****

Inside Mabase

"So… she's left…" Naota woke up to find all of Haruko's belongings missing. His floor was now very clean when compared to the mess it had been while she was there. He climbed the small ladder at the foot of his bed and was not surprised to see that the top bunk was empty. 

Sighing, he got dressed into some casual clothes, there was no school today. He walked downstairs into the dining room where he found his father, Kamon, cooking lunch. 

"Canti has left too?" Naoto asked.

"Yeah, it seems that way…" Kamon sounded down but Naota knew that it was because he would have to work more around the house. Naota walked around the house into the living room and saw his grandfather.

"Huh?!" Naota saw his grandfather leering at an idol magazine again. "Stop that grandfather!"

"Hmph!" He ignored Naota and continued to stare at a curvy model. 

Naota looked back in his house and decided to leave for a while, there was no one he could talk to there. He began to walk around town. There seemed to be more activity than usual. _No doubt due to yesterday. _Although he couldn't remember what happened, he knew that many people were injured, the total number of dead not yet known. Some news crews had managed to catch what happened, showing the giant robot destroying a large part of Mabase when he attacked Haruko with all five arms. Naota felt guilty, he knew that there was probably nothing he could've done. Haruko went in there all alone, and Naota wasn't in control of Canti at the time. _How did Canti continue to fight when I wasn't in there? _He looked over the city and saw the giant hand, fingers placed as if trying to steal the moon from its orbit. He heard a noise and looked down. He didn't realise he had walked this far, he was on the other end of the bridge into Mabase. Under the bridge he saw Mamimi lighting up another cigarette; she hadn't seen him. He watched for a few more minutes, saw her kick some stones into the river, and then he left.

__

Mamimi. That girl was a puzzle to him, what was he in her life? _I thought she loved me…she rejecting my kiss the day before. But what about all the times she wanted to be with me, the times she hugged me? I hated the way she called for my brother instead of me; it was like betrayal… _He sighed. _I have no one left now… My friends don't understand me, my father and grandfather are in a world of their own, Canti is gone, Haruko is gone… everyone… _Left to his own devices he continued to walk the streets, not noticing the men wearing black suits checking the area out. 

Misato had just given the order to Section 2 to find the two individuals that were seen fighting the large robot. It turned out to be fairly simple to find out the location of the smaller robot. By asking several house owners they managed to pinpoint the area to within a few streets. It wasn't until the person opposite the home of Naota pointed out that the robot lived opposite him. 

A pair of Section 2 agents knocked on the door of the Nandaba residence. 

"Ahh, hold on one moment please!" Shouted a voice from within. Several seconds passed until the door opened. "Ah, hello there, how can I you?" It was Kamon who answered.

One agent held up a picture of Canti that was taken from the video of the fight. "Do you have this robot in your home?"

Kamon studied the picture, but was thinking. _Who are these people? No one has ever asked about Canti before so why now? _"Erm…" He drew back, "Firstly, who are you?"

The agent sighed and produced an ID card, "We're from NERV. Now you can't lie to us, we know that you have this robot in your possession here, so we've come here to find it." He furrowed his brow, "If you don't agree to allow us in then we may have to use… force." Within the pause he patted his chest where Kamon knew a pistol lay in wait. 

"Now, now, there's no need to resort to violence." He held up his hands submissively, "The robot used to live here but vanished soon after yesterdays events." He saw the agents getting a little agitated by this, "… however if you don't believe me you're more than welcome to search the place." 

Kamon opened the door further to let them both in. he kept out of their way as he let them around the house, informing the grandfather of what was happening.

"They'd better not steal my magazine collection!"

"No father, they won't." Kamon sighed at this. _Always worried about his idols…_

The two agents searched everywhere, disturbing everything that seemed to hide a hidden room. They went in Naota's room but saw nothing of interest. Miu Miu was lying on the chair, his back to the agents. Giving them a cursory glance he seemed to smirk under his maw and turned back to have another nap. Finally giving up they were on their way out, passing Kamon on the way out without a word. The other agent had a thought and turned back. 

"Do you know this woman?" He held out a picture, again from the video of the battle. 

"Ahh, that's Haruko-chan…" He said her name lovingly. 

"You know her?!" The other agent spoke in disbelief.

"Of course!" Kamon spoke as if insulted, "She lived here as well for a time until yesterday when she vanished, much like Canti."

"Canti… this is the robot I assume…" The agent was taking notes of this new information.

"That's right." He turned to go back further inside, "Now if you don't mind I have some business to attend to."

"Very well, we'll be on our way, and we'll be in touch Kamon."

"How do you know my name?" He turned back looking at the agents very suspiciously.

"Heh." One of them smirked and they both left the house quietly into the street where a black car with the NERV insignia was parked. Kamon watched as they entered the car and drove off down the road, turning left where he lost sight of them.

"Something big is going to happen soon…" 


	4. Fear leads to suspicion…

****

Secrets should never be forgotten…

Chapter 4

Fear leads to suspicion…

Meanwhile…

Tokyo-3 

Misato's flat

Shinji was sat in the living room watching the television; there were some reports about the status regarding the large bomb that was detonated in Tokyo-3 just a few days ago. _Classic cover-up, it's better than saying we destroyed an Angel and… _He shook his head again to clear his thoughts of what happened. There were images of many people leaving Tokyo-3 in droves, too afraid to stay any longer. He wished to be with them, not having any reason to stay apart from piloting Unit-01, well, so he thought. There were some reports about the events in Mabase, where the images showed the giant hand still being scoured over by NERV. The rare footage of what happened during the fight was brought to light, showing the destruction of many buildings by the combined assault by the five guns. Shinji was horrified by the devastation it caused afterwards, which was shown. There was no footage of his fight against the robot. _NERV's doing no doubt…The typical news blackout, which would make Kensuke angry again. Kensuke… I wonder how he is… It's been a while; I haven't spoken to him since he left Tokyo-3. _

Shinji turned the television off. He had nothing more to do but think. _That robot yesterday was strange, Misato-san told me that there was no pilot in it, but it wasn't an Angel either. But… a hand? Why? Was it built to grab that building which looked like an iron? _As absurd as it seemed it still made some sense to Shinji. At that moment the door opened.

"Tadaima!" Misato shouted out from the doorway. No one replied.

Walking into the living room she saw Shinji lying on the sofa, eyes closed. _He doesn't look asleep… _"Shinji-kun?"

"Hmm?" He mumbled, lazily opening one eye to see her. 

"Are you okay?" She sat down by his feet.

"I'm fine Misato." He sat up to face her. "It's just that I've been thinking of the last battle…" She looked at him neutrally. "Is there a new foe now?" He trailed off, unable to finish. _Am I destined to remain a pilot all my life…? _

"Shinji-kun, we don't know who there robots are, and what they want, but it clear that they mean to harm us in some way, you saw how it attacked you."

"I know Misato, but I sensed that it wasn't interested in me at first." _Should I tell her about what I think? _He hesitated then continued. "It's almost as if the robot wanted to grab onto that large building…"

"What makes you say that?" Misato was intrigued.

"Instead of attacking me straightaway, it headed off into the direction of the town, the other side of which the building was." 

"I see…" She was thinking a little. 

"What is that building anyway Misato? Why is it so large?" He asked.

"We're not sure ourselves, all we can gather from the security guards are that it's a manufacturing plant owned by a company known as Medical Mechanica." She had been given the information from her agents in Mabase. 

"Medical Mechanica…" Shinji racked his brains, "I've never heard of it…"

"Me neither…" She looked pensive, "We have people looking into it at the moment."

__

Medical Mechanica… MM… it couldn't be… "Misato, do you have some images from the battle on you?" _Didn't I see a mark on the head of that robot? _

"Yes of course we do." Slightly confused she continued, "We always record the battle to plan for strategy purposes." Pulling out some shots taken from the video she handed them to Shinji. "What are you looking for?"

"I remembered seeing some markings on the top of the robot…" He stopped at one photo, taken at the beginning when he kicked the robot away from him. "I thought so… Look here." He pointed at the area.

"'MM'… WHAT?!" She couldn't believe it, "Medical Mechanica? They created that robot?! For what reason?" 

Shinji was silent, "I don't know…"

Standing up she stretched her arms out. "Right, I'm going to my room to change and have a long bath, I didn't sleep last night and my muscles are all cramped."

"Okay Misato." She smiled at him and went off to her room, the sounds of her door opening and closing twice as she went in to pick up her soap and towel. 

Shinji stood up, he had nothing left to do, no one to talk to, his friends had left. He still couldn't face Rei now that he knew what she was. The only other alternative was his other female flatmate. Walking over to the doorway of Asuka's room he was about to knock before he heard some stifled sobs from inside. Taking a risk he rapped lightly on her doorframe. Hearing a lot of shuffling he heard her shout out.

"W… What is it?" She sounded irate.

"Erm… nothing Asuka" He knew that she was angry at him, but for what reason he couldn't determine, "just wondering how you were, that's all." 

"Baka Shinji, just leave me alone!" Her voice began to crack. 

"Asuka…" _I have to do this… _"I'm coming in…" 

Taking a risk for one of the few times in his life, he opened her door. Bracing himself for the imminent impact of a pillow, book, chair or even a fist, he was surprised when nothing hit him. Looking around the darkened room, he noticed that her bin was full to bursting with used tissues. Looking to the bed he saw Asuka lying in a foetal position, facing away from him. She was wearing a loose yellow T-shirt with some very short blue shorts. Shinji didn't know where to look, he feared he would get a nosebleed, but he was getting worried for her. _She would've shouted at me by now or at the very least glared at me… _Walking over to her, he held her shoulder lightly.

"Asuka…" She flinched from his touch.

Beginning to sob violently she choked out. "Go away Shinji…" 

__

Shinji? Not Baka Shinji? Something must be very wrong… Shaking her more he persisted. "What's wrong Asuka?!" He was becoming more desperate. 

Turning to him, her red rimmed eyes were contorted in anger, she shouted in his face. "I SAID GO NOW!" Her body then began to tremble as she spoke barely above a whisper, her eyes now downcast, "Before I do something I regret…" 

Shinji by now had retreated to halfway across her room. _What should I do? She's angry with me, but she's also crying. I want to comfort her yet… she might kill me for doing so… _Giving up he turned to the door. Glancing back at her, he saw that her cheeks were puffy, she had been crying for a long while. Seeing another tear flow from her eye he stopped for a split second then continued towards the door.

"I… I'll see you later Asuka…" Opening her door he left. Unseen to his eyes as he fled to the safety of his room, Asuka cried a new set of tears into her pillow. 

****

Unknown location

Twelve monoliths lit up in the blackest of rooms; all suspended in the air a few metres from the ground. The words SEELE and SOUND ONLY were on each of them, their differences being the numbers that adorned them. The one know as 04 spoke up

"What is the meaning of this Kihl?!" He sounded angry but desperate. 

"I agree." SEELE 11 continued. "This does not conform to our scenario."

The other members all began to talk saying basically the same thing before SEELE 01 interrupted them.

"It is irrelevant." He paused until everyone quieted down, "From what NERV says, these are not Angels, but another enemy." There was another pause due to some murmuring from some of the monoliths. "The scenario hasn't changed, we can still proceed unspoiled. However I must look into this new matter in further detail."

"'I' Kihl?" SEELE 02 sounded suspicious, "We are doing this for humanity, not one's own personal gain."

There was a pause before he replied. "Do you doubt my intentions?" Upon receiving no reply he went on, "Do not try my patience any further, or you will face the consequences. This meeting is over."

Almost instantly every monolith vanished from sight, leaving the darkness to itself for a few seconds before three monoliths reappeared, 02 07 and 09.

02 spoke first. "I feel Kihl has an agenda that he has not shown us."

09 replied, "Don't we all have some agenda my friend?"

"True…" 02 admitted, "However Kihl's might have to do with Instrumentality."

There was a tense moment between the monoliths. 07 broke the silence. 

"We need proof of what he is planning before we do anything rash. As you all know he controls more resources and governments that we do."

"Very well." 02 concluded, "After the next meeting we shall meet again like this with anything we find."

"Agreed" said both 07 and 09 simultaneously.

"Until then…" 02 faded out, followed shortly by 07 and 09.

Another few seconds passed before a new type of monolith broke the darkness again, but this time a brilliant sky blue in the same position as where 01 stood. In navy blue were the letters MM, one above the other, the letter I, and SOUND ONLY below that.

"Hmm…" It spoke, "This could be interesting…" A resounding laugh without mirth then emanated from the monolith, the laugh still echoing as it vanished into the darkness. 


	5. Feelings can change

****

Secrets should never be forgotten…

Chapter 5

Feelings can change

Later that evening

Mabase

Nandaba residence

Naota returned home, he was tired from the long walk of his. Walking into the house he removed his shoes and kicked them off irately, and put on his slippers. Kamon looked out into the hallway to see his son.

"Naota…" His glasses betrayed nothing, "You missed dinner, where were you?"

"Why is it any of your business?!" Naota snapped in reply.

Taken aback slightly, he backed away "Well… uh… I just worry for you sometimes."

"I'm fine…" Naota responded, his voice not exactly confirming his statement. 

To end any more conversation he walked on into the flat, his baseball bat over his shoulder, he walked up the stairs, leaving his father behind. Opening the door to his room, he placed the bat against the doorframe, throwing his cap on the upper bunk before closing his door and turning the light off. Lying on his front on the bottom bunk, his eyelids began to get heavy. Before he nodded off he heard a sound behind him. Angling his head slightly to the left, and opening one eye, he saw the familiar figure of Miu Miu. Jumping off the windowsill, he began walking to the chair he usually sat on, giving a quick look at Naota before jumping onto the chair and having another of his catnaps. He frowned at the cat. _When did we get him? It seems like he's been in the family for only a short while… _Naota sighed. _At least it's a fairly ordinary day, no more strange bulges from my head, so that's always a good thing. _Closing his eyes, he turned around onto his back and soon fell into a fitful sleep.

****

The next day, Monday

Midday

NERV Headquarters

"We have their names now I take it."

"That is correct Commander." Misato stood in the dark office holding files of information. "From what we could gather, the name of the woman is Haruko, and the name of the smaller robot is Canti." She shuddered a little as she continued, "After a bit of research, we could find no recollection of this woman, there are no files of employment, official residence, or even a birth certificate for her. However Canti…" She paused for a moment, "appears to be more or less docile, everyone who has seen him has only seen good things. Yet when we did some research on his name, it stood for the 'Black Angel of Fire'."

Gendo was silent for a few seconds, "Do you believe that this might be an Angel Katsuragi-san?"

Misato swallowed before replying, "No I don't believe so, however the fact that his name was derived from an Angel, the very threat that we are battling at the moment, well… I just thought I should make mention of that, just in case they turn out to be hostile."

"I see…" Gendo didn't move a muscle from his trademark position, "Thank you for this information Katsuragi-san, I shall have to muse over these new details for the time being. Dismissed."

"Sir!" She saluted him and left the office promptly, the door closing with an echo.

From the shadows behind Gendo, a voice spoke.

"What are you thinking Ikari?" The figure moved forwards and a stray beam of light passed over Fuyutsuki's face.

"Nothing much old friend." He smirked, "I wonder how the old men will take this news."

Fuyutsuki smiled, "Yes, I don't imagine that they will be best pleased at the fact that another player has entered the field, with an Angel's name no less."

"We should keep an eye out for any more strange occurrences in Mabase." Gendo stated firmly.

Fuyutsuki nodded, "Agreed, another incident like the last could damage us." 

"I'm also intrigued by the military force that had a higher security clearance than us." Gendo said a tad angry, "We should find out who they are exactly."

"I'll have my people look into it Commander." He was about to leave before something crossed his mind, "Should I mention this to Katsuragi?"

"Only that we wish to be kept informed of events in Mabase." He smirked beneath his palms. 

"Very well." Fuyutsuki moved back into the shadows and left via the secret door behind the desk.

Left to himself for the first time in a while, Gendo relaxed his arms, placing his hands flat on his desk. Lowering his right hand, he opened a secret compartment on the side of his desk and withdrew a faded photograph enclosed in a wooden frame. The beaming face of a brown haired woman was seen, as she held a young boy of no more than two years of age, who looked confusedly into the camera. Gendo held the photo in his hands for a long while. _Yui… It won't be long now…_

****

Meanwhile

Mabase

In the school grounds

Naota walked down the corridor with his backpack, lazily holding it on one shoulder, books weighing it down. He had turned up late for the day. The teacher shouted at him but he paid no attention to it. He had brought all of the necessary things to study, but he had no will to work, just sitting in each lesson and looking out of the window. His friends, Gaku and Masashi noticed this, and approached him after the lesson ended.

"Hey Naota, what's wrong?" Masashi asked.

Naota remained silent. _I don't want to speak to them about this for the time being…_

"What about that hot babe?!" The glassed Gaku chimed in, poking his head over Masashi's shoulder. "Does she still kiss you?!" He then went into his usual 'Chu!' chant, his lips pursing to a ridiculous amount. 

"No…" Naota spoke softly, "She left not long after everything that happened yesterday. I haven't seen her since."

"Oh, do you know why?" A new voice joined the conversation. Naota turned his head to see the purple haired Ninamori looking at him with a curious expression on her face. 

"No…" 

He then walked off in front of his friends, surprising them all. Ninamori looked at him and sighed. _He's hurt badly, probably his 'girlfriend', the one who liked his brother… I wonder what happened…_

The whole day went along like that, Naota being unresponsive to most people, not talking in lessons. The end of the day came and he left school, his friends following him. They walked along the bridge not speaking to each other. They reached the vending machine. Naota put in several Yen and picked a can from the selection, and opened it.

"I thought you didn't like that sour stuff Naota." Ninamori said. 

Naota had already taken a sip of it and realised that. "I know…" He removed the can from his lips and looked at the top, the liquid surrounding the rim. "I'm getting used to the taste… I just realised that I don't feel like it at this moment." He handed it over to Ninamori who was closest to him.

He looked to his right and saw the place where Mamimi usually hangs out. Sure enough she was there, a shoe floating down the river as she cleaned herself up using the water. Disregarding her he walked on. 

"Naota, are you just going to leave it like this?" Masashi spoke up. 

He didn't reply, just walked on in silence, the steam blowing out of the Medical Mechanica plant. Masashi and Gaku went home together whereas Ninamori ran up to Naota. 

"Hey Naota." She began, "You've been quiet all day… what happened during the robot fight?"

Naota was silent for a while. "I don't want to talk about it."

Ninamori made a guess, "Is it about Mamimi?"

Naota turned to her shocked, "Is it that obvious?"

She shrugged, "Well, you didn't seem eager to go see her back then." She took a sip from the can, "It is a bit sour now that you mention it." She looked at him, "By the way, just so you know, my parents are back together now. They met up at the play and sorted out their problems. They were both equally stubborn, too headstrong to admit that they were wrong. Maybe that's the same in this case..." She looked down momentarily, "You should talk to her, to sort out what happened between you two."

Naota was pensive, "Maybe I'll do that… Just not right now…"

"Whatever…" Taking another short sip she smirked.

"Thanks… for the talk Ninamori…" He looked away to hide the slight redness on his cheeks.

"Oh it was nothing…" She too looked away, trying to hide her blush by drinking more from the can. "Anyway, see you tomorrow at school."

"Bye Ninamori…" He watched her walk away from him.

He didn't realise that they had both walked all the way to his house. _But… Ninamori lives far from me… Why did she walk all the way home with me…?_

The rest of the evening went along quietly. The three men had their dinner together followed by some television viewing. When he got tired, Naota left the living room, saying goodnight to both his father and grandfather. Lurching sleepily towards his room, he opened the door and got dressed into his pyjamas. _I can't handle these late nights it seems… _Turning the light off, he got into the lower bunk and pulled the covers over him. Closing his eyes, his mind focussed on one thing that confused him at that moment.

"Ninamori…"

He fell asleep with that name on his lips. Not soon after, a small spiky lump began to grow on his head, reaching until the headboard, where it stopped. 

****

-------------------

Author's Notes

Woo… Long time since I updated this one… I'm feeling particularly creative at the moment, hence my doing this chapter. The ideas for this series are coming in thick and fast now, I can be sure that this will be a series to remember. Lots of main points already prepared, just some filler may be needed. 

The ending will be a sight to behold… Looking forward to writing it, although that won't come about until many more chapters later. 

Hope you enjoy this instalment. Reviews are welcome, flames also (not got one flame yet throughout my stories ^_^')

Until next time

- Jason


	6. Umbrellas and pilots

****

Secrets should never be forgotten…

Chapter 6

Umbrellas and pilots

The next day, August 7th 2015

2:05AM

Tokyo-3

NERV Headquarters

The strange readings were detected at exactly 1:13AM, although a thousand times less powerful than the last reading. Makoto had ordered all the night personnel to begin analysing the data as soon as possible, and to see where it came from. The GPS satellite found it to be in Mabase again. Evaluating the matter carefully, Makoto decided to inform the Commander immediately. It turned out that he wasn't asleep and had already heard of the news, and he ordered Makoto to his office.

"You wished to see me Commander?" Said a standing Makoto in the shadows of the office. 

"Yes, I would like to hear what you have on the new readings so far." Gendo stated succinctly. 

Pulling out a palmtop he began looking over his prognosis. "The signal is currently 1024 times less powerful than it was in the previous incident, with no hint of growing or subsiding at any time soon. The signal is also coming from the town of Mabase." He paused to let this sink in. "Although I am not the expert in analysing such signals, Maya or Rit… other senior personnel would be able to tell more." Makoto didn't like to overstate his abilities, he just told the facts straight out, not wanting the Commander to believe that he could do anything. 

He did have opinions though. 

"However…" He sounded a bit nervous but spoke on, "Considering the size of these readings, and comparing it with that time we found the Angel egg in the volcano, I think it might be useful to locate the exact location. In doing so we might have found the source, possibly the same source for that of the previous enemy."

Gendo kept quiet for a few moments pondering these details. _The readings need to be understood more fully, but I believe his judgement that if we find them, we'll find the source. _"Very well, we shall see to this matter later in the morning. I will advise the Major of your concerns, which I feel are correct, when she is due to report, but for now we shall allow her time to sleep."

Breathing a silent sigh of relief Makoto saluted the Commander and left the office. As the door slammed shut Gendo was left to himself in the darkness. _Could it be another one of them? These readings need to be understood perfectly, and the only way that can it be done is by using her…_

****

7:30AM

Mabase

Nandaba Residence

Naota's alarm clock went off repeatedly, the buzzing escalating to a level that led him to smack it off his bedside table in irritation. _Well, another day of school, guess I'd better go. _Unwillingly sitting, he got out of bed and became the daily ritual of changing into some casual clothes for the days and packing his schoolbag with all the necessary things. When he tried to put on his top however, he noticed that it wouldn't get over his head easily. Once it was on he began to feel around his head but couldn't find any lumps. Confused he moved his hands further up and discovered a thin cylindrical shape, moving up more it opened out into an odd shape. Running to the nearest mirror, he looked at himself. 

"An umbrella?!" 

Indeed, it what as he said, a small umbrella was growing out of the tip of his head, his skin stretching over that area. Placing a lot of pressure on it he managed to push back into his head. Getting some plasters and strong fasteners he kept it down, and put on his normal red cap, backwards of course. Ready for school he walked downstairs into the kitchen. 

His father was there, cooking some breakfast, "Naota-kun, do you want some egg and bacon?"

"What? Why isn't there any rice?" He complained.

"We ran out, this is all there is left, but it's very tasty if unhealthy." Explained the elder Nandaba.

"I think I'll pass." He turned to go out before being stopped again, 

"Naota-kun, wait, at least have a slice of toast, there's a small amount of butter of it. I have a feeling that you'll be getting hungry today." Kamon said, holding out said piece of toast.

"Okay then." Naota took the toast from his father. "I'm off to school, see you later."

"Bye Naota!"

The front door slid shut and Naota began to walk his way to school, he was making good time so decided to walk a different route there at a slower pace. Reaching a part of town he hadn't visited in many months he was surprised to see the cars moving by swiftly. _Before there were endless traffic jams, the lights had failed so many times and the police never stood in to move traffic about. They must've done something about it now… _He took another bite out of his toast whilst pondering this. Looking to the infamous junction he saw a small platform, but he facefaulted upon seeing who, or to be precise, what was standing there. The view pans up to show two thin legs, apparently non-human, a small chest and finally a large monitor for a head. 

"Canti!" Naota shouted. 

The robot, registering that someone called him calculated the origin using his audio receptors and looked in Naota's direction with a large question mark on the monitor. Recognising Naota he beckoned for all the vehicles to stop, looking to Naota his monitor said, 'Come Here'. Doing so Naota walked over and stood on the same platform as Canti. 

"Have you been here all this time?" Asked Naota. A 'thumbs up' picture blinked on the monitor as cars ran by; he was still directing traffic whilst talking. 

Naota looked a little sad now, "Why did you leave the house, was it something we did…?" A red X appeared followed by a snapshot of Haruko.

"Haruko told you to leave?!" Naota exclaimed, and a thumbs up appeared. 

"Where is she?" Canti this time took a short while to answer before a question mark appeared followed by a picture of her Vespa and then a picture of Mabase with a large red X through it. 

"I see…" The boy said, deciphering his clues, "You don't know exactly where she's gone, but she took her Vespa and left town." Canti did the thumbs up picture again. 

"Are you coming home soon?" A red X was Canti's reply. 

"It's just that… I have another bump growing on my head…" Naota said dejectedly, looking down. An exclamation mark later and Canti put a hand on Naota's shoulder. Looking up Naota could see the sun beginning to shine behind the robot, a silhouette being formed. Looking into the monitor, the unmistakable symbol burned bright red straight at Naota, the symbol that appears when the both of them are one. The monitor head looked up a tad and became full of sweatdrops the screen suddenly replaced with a black exclamation mark in a yellow triangle, the warning symbol. Naota turned around to see a massive lorry heading straight for the two of them; the driver was out of control. Naota screamed and covered his face with his arms and heard a loud smash. Realising he was untouched he looked out to see Canti in between him and the lorry, one hand out holding the lorry at arms reach, the engine still running, and the wheels squealing with burning rubber. After downloading the schematic of the lorry to his database, Canti ran a x-ray scan of the engine to ascertain the problem. Noticing that one of the fluid line for the brakes were leaking, he ripped open the front, fused the line together and the driver stopped the lorry. A minute later he pulled off, thanking Canti. Naota looked at his robotic friend. _He hasn't lost any of his strength or kindness… _

"Arigatou Canti." Smiled Naota, "We'll meet again soon." 

Walking away across the empty road, he waved to Canti, and the robot waved back, only to get panicked when all the cars took this as a signal and starting driving across the intersection. In two seconds, the view zoomed out above the central platform to show instant gridlock, where every road was full and the junction completely packed. Canti looked deflated as his monitor showed a white flag. 

****

8:30AM

Tokyo-3

Misato's Apartment

The sound of snoring is rife in the room of the Major, not having a proper night's sleep over the last few days had caught up with her. So much so that the sound of her alarm could be barely heard over the long drawn out breaths. The phone began to ring. From beneath the futon a tired looking hand began to feel its way around the area, a comb, a jacket, a pair of sunglasses, until it reached the ringing mobile. 

"Hello?" Yawned a tired Misato from underneath the futon cover. The distant sound of thunder can be heard as a small storm passes over Tokyo-3.

"What?! I'm late?!" Misato yelled.

On the other end a slightly nervous Maya replied, "Erm no Katsuragi-san, I'm just here to inform you that another set of readings were detected early last night, my shift just began so I'm trying to pinpoint the exact location, the Commander would like to find the source. I just want to inform you that you need to bring Shinji and Asuka straight to NERV as opposed to school, more orders will be received there."

"Understood Maya, arigatou." Clicking the phone off Misato started to get dressed.


	7. Comfort and shock

****

Secrets should never be forgotten…

Chapter 7

Comfort and shock

Half an hour earlier

The kitchen

Meanwhile in the kitchen, Asuka and Shinji were already awake wearing their school uniform, Shinji making some toast, he didn't particularly feel like rice that morning and neither did Asuka, who ordered him to make toast with butter. Handing her a plate with two slices of buttered toast he placed down a jar of marmalade and one of strawberry jam in between the both of them. He had some jam on both of his toasts, whereas Asuka preferred the marmalade. There was complete silence between the two of them. Shinji kept looking at Asuka and noticed that her eyes were slightly red, but he didn't want to comment on it. 

"Asuka…" He began.

"What is it?!" She snapped.

Jerking back a bit he pointed to her plate, "Have you finished? I have to wash the plates."

Looking down she realised that her plate was empty, without saying anything more she pushed it towards his direction and stood up from the table, walking over to the window. Picking up the plates quietly he placed them in the sink along with the knives they just used and started washing them. Finishing quickly he placed them out to dry and left the kitchen area into the living room. He saw her looking out to the city below, the rain spattering against the window. Though he couldn't see, her eyes were filled with pain and sadness.

__

Strangled…

A woman holding the neck of a doll

Hatred…

A doll's head ripped off, blood drops beneath it

Shame…

A little girl, crying alone

Suicide…

The silhouette of a woman hanging

Comfortable…

A little girl needing no one, dependant only on herself

The tears were flowing freely now. _Okaasan, why didn't you protect me? Instead you tried to kill me. Why did that Angel bring all these memories up again…? _Her shoulders were moving involuntarily as she stifled her sobs. Shinji noticed this as he was sitting at the sofa. He got up and moved behind Asuka. He held her shoulder lightly. Suddenly waking up out of her reverie she slapped away his hand, turning towards him sharply. 

"What are you doing baka Shinji?!" She yelled harshly. 

"Nothing… I was…" He was looking at her blue eyes, and the tears that poured from them, "Worried…"

__

What?! This wimp is feeling sorry for me?! I've got to teach him a lesson! She starting hitting him on the chest, Shinji was about to defend himself when he noticed that the hits weren't at all like her previous ones, these were paltry in terms of strength, so he allowed her to continue. After a few minutes of pummelling, her arms began to get tired and eventually they only made tapping sounds on his shirt. Looking at him once again, all she saw in his eyes was sadness, but a hint of something else. _Could it be compassion? _Giving in, Asuka started to cry out loud, and launched herself into his chest, her face spreading her tears onto his shirt, her arms clutching his top. Shinji froze; this was the first time that Asuka had hugged him, so he was unsure of what to do. _I want to hug her… But she'll kill me for doing something perverted… Yet I'm only helping her… _Throwing caution to the wind, he slowly embraced her, placing his arms around her thin back. Doing this only made her cry louder and wetter sobs into his shirt. Shinji has a sudden image in his mind. _I remember this… I… I was running along a pavement, one of them was cracking in one area, and I slipped, grazing my knee badly. I was crying a lot… then someone… my mother! She picked me up and hugged me, telling me it would be all right… _Trying to mimic his mother he started gently rubbing her back and whispering 'It'll be okay' to Asuka. He also recalled his mother kissing the area near his knee to help it heal faster, but he wasn't about to kiss Asuka on the head yet. _I don't know what that Angel did to Asuka, but it'll more take time to heal than a normal injury, mental wounds hurt the most, in terms of pain and how long it lasts. _Moving one of his hands up he held her head gently and made no more movements, giving her time to cry. 

Several minutes passed and Asuka had finally run out of tears, and instead she kept sniffing a lot, still holding onto Shinji, who was looking out of the window impassively. Once he thought it was safe to talk he spoke. 

"Asuka," He began, which resulted in her looking up at him, "A… Are you feeling a little better now?"

Not wanting to speak yet because of the fear that another sobs might come out first, she nodded. Shinji smiled sincerely, "That's good Asuka." He looked over to the sofa, "Let's sit down for a bit…"

They both walked over to the sofa and sat down. Shinji wasn't expecting anything more, and wasn't surprised to see Asuka sit nearer the opposite end away from him. Glancing at her he glad to see that her cheeks were dry now, her eyes gradually becoming less red by the minute. A few moments of silence before Misato entered the room. 

"Hello you two! Have a good night sleep?" 

Shinji spoke first, "Yes, arigatou Misato."

Misato was about to continue, not expecting Asuka to reply, but, "I had a good night also Misato." She said neutrally.

__

She hasn't spoken to me for a few days… For her to suddenly talk to me something must've happened… A sly look crossed her face, her eyebrow raising in suspicion, "What have you two been up to today?"

They both sat bolt upright on the sofa, "Nothing!" They yelled together exasperated. 

Misato was still dubious but said no more. "Well, it doesn't matter anyway. I have news for you, we're all heading straight for NERV, no more school today."

"Why?" Shinji said, "What's happened?"

Misato looked a little serious, "Readings similar to the last incident have appeared again in Mabase, we are to report to NERV for further instructions."

Shinji and Asuka looked grave and understood what this meant. "Why… Why do I have to go?" Asked Asuka, "I mean… I… can't pilot…" She managed to get out before any more emotions came to the surface.

"I'm not sure, but you're a part of this now, that's all. Lets go now, we'll drive there."

Shinji and Asuka suddenly felt their stomachs lurch as the sweatdropped together. _I shouldn't have eaten if I knew that Misato was going to drive… _

****

One ten minute drive from hell later

NERV Headquarters

"Reporting for duty sir!" Misato saluted the Commander in Central Dogma. The two pilots were standing queasily behind her, her faces a shade of green. Rei was already standing there when they arrived.

"Major Katsuragi," Said a hand clasped Gendo, "You will accompany the three children for immediate deployment to Mabase." This shocked the pilots, their faces going through many expressions of disbelief, curiosity and fear. "Ibuki Maya will accompany Unit-01 and Unit-02. Thanks to our 'expert'" He said this in a derogatory tone, "we now have a device to detect this emissions in Mabase."

Misato looked behind her to see a familiar lab coat together with a clipboard in hand. The face seemed to have aged a lot, her eyes were tired, her face devoid of any emotion, and her blonde hair was in tatters, as is it hadn't been combed for a long while. Handcuffs were shown to be tight around her wrists.

"Ritsuko…" Misato was lost for words. She knew that this person had done many bad things, she had withheld information, created clones of Rei using DNA strands of humans. However at one point, she was her friend, they had shared many a drink together, laughed about the future, commiserated one another, and worked with each other. She turned to the commander with anger present in her eyes.

"If this turns out to be another enemy similar to the one found last time, then you will reside in Mabase permanently. NERV has found a suitable apartment for the four of you and set up a small base nearby to house the Evangelions. Your personal possessions will be moved in a short time to your new address. All the necessary technicians and engineers are already there building the structures." He had finished, and was watching over the people beneath him, their faces, their expressions. "The VTOL craft will be docking at Extraction Point A in ten minutes. I expect you to be there without further delay. Dismissed." 

Misato was numb with shock, the news was overbearing, incomprehensible, and it took several seconds before she saluted him. Gendo calmly got up and walked away from them. "Fuyutsuki, I leave the rest to you." 

Moving forwards slightly the former professor looked down upon his staff. "There are few more issues to discuss, and though I can understand that you might have some misgivings about all this, however there is nothing that can be done. These new foes must be stopped, and the only way of doing that is to be there when it happens." _Hmph, the commander used his usual charm in telling them that they were to leave their homes for a long while, I thought I had to say it a bit nicer for them. _Sure enough the pilots and Misato looked less glum at this prospect, but still were not happy overall. 


	8. New homes and old friends

****

Secrets should never be forgotten…

Chapter 8

New homes and old friends

****

Ten minutes later

Extraction Point A

The VTOL craft had arrived, and Misato told the pilots to get in first, Shinji the first to get in, followed by Asuka, who looked a little nervous, and Rei, impassive as ever, went in last. After making sure the children were in, Misato went in herself. Taking off promptly, the flight was short, Shinji was sitting by a window, and he kept looking out of it. Rei too was by a window and stared in a bored fashion to the hills below. Asuka, stuck in between the two was feeling worried. _Where is this place? My home… We're leaving it… Just my luck that I'm sitting next to Wondergirl… _She made a furtive glance at the blue haired girl, who gave no indication that she was being watched. During her glance she saw the massive building through the window that Rei was looking out of. 

"M… M… Misato!" She shouted, "What is that?!" pointing agitated in the general direction of the building. 

"Oh… that?" She said off-handedly, "It's the Medical Mechanica plant, that's all…"

"Oh really…?" Asuka mumbled. _I can't believe the size of it, surely that isn't natural. _

****

Ten minutes later

Mabase

"Well… here we are then!" Said a bright Misato, "This is our new home!" Holding a hand out in a dramatic fashion, the children looked to their new home to see a rather grotty little place, only two floors high. 

"Is this it?!" Asuka said disgusted by the sight of it, "I thought NERV were supposed to have found us this place."

"They did." Replied an upset Misato, "It was all they could find, it's far enough from the centre of town where they believe the battle could take place, and I think it looks cosy myself." She huffed up and crossed her arms.

"It appears adequate for habitation. I have no objections to living here." Ayanami spoke up for the first time that day. 

"So Wondergirl likes it then… What do you think baka Shinji?" Asuka sneered.

Shinji turned to her. _It looks like she's become her own self again… _"I don't mind personally, we can always make the inside look nice."

Instead of exploding in rage, Asuka did something Shinji would never have expected, she sighed. 

"Oh well, guess we'd better go in then…"

"Okay me first!" Misato said as she opened the door, "I bagsie this room!" She shouted, indicating the room to the right of the door.

Asuka then ran in the next room before the staircase, but it was the living room and the kitchen through it. Going up the stairs after making a cursory glance, she chose the room just in front of the staircase. "This is the new room of Sohryu Asuka Langley."

Shinji following her chose the room next to it. "I guess this'll just have to be my one then."

Rei followed the two up the stairs and looked about, noticing that there were no more rooms available. Walking into the same room as Shinji she stated, "This will be my room as well." 

Jaws dropped all round, no more than Shinji though, who backed away, paler than before. Misato chose this point to pounce. "Shin-chan, what a stud… attracting all the ladies eh?" She spoke seductively. 

"No way!" Asuka objected, "He can't stay with Wondergirl… It's… It's sinful!" Shinji was still looking at Rei with fear. _How can I stay with her in the same knowing that she is a part of me, a clone of my mother…? _

Asuka crossed her arms, "Its no use, he'll have to stay with me then…" This time Shinji almost died from heart failure.

Misato was surprised by this turn of events, "Is that okay with you Shinji?"

"Y… Yes…?" He was unsure of what to say and left the room.

"This is acceptable. I will stay here." Stated Rei, looking once at Shinji then Asuka. Rei then closed her door. Misato waved goodbye and went downstairs. 

Shinji walked into his new room and noticed a bunk bed immediately on his left. The room was a pale blue colour with a small desk and chair in one corner, shelves adorning that part of the wall. 

"It could do with a bit of furniture…" He mused out loud. 

Asuka snuck up behind him and whispered into his ear, "I have the top bunk, and if you do anything perverted baka Shinji," He turned to face her as she continued, "I'll kill you." Her eyes were fiery, her fangs larger than normal as she grinned menacingly at him. However the fire was consumed by a wave of calmness, and she even smiled at Shinji. Sliding the door shut Asuka turned to Shinji. A blush was apparent on her face, which surprised Shinji even further. 

"I never really thanked you for this morning Shinji…"

He had almost forgotten about it, it seemed like it was days ago. "It… It was nothing Asuka. I knew you were sad and I tried to comfort you."

She sat on the lower bunk and patted the spot next to her, on which Shinji sat. "Do you know what that Angel did to me?" 

Shinji could guess because of what she said while it was happening, "I'm… not sure Asuka, I only heard you scream…"

"It raped my mind…" Her voice began to break, "It reminded me of things in my past that I wanted to forget." 

She then began to recount what had happened in her past, her mother losing her mind, the suicide, and her need to survive alone. Shinji didn't interrupt her while she spoke on. He stayed seated by her, watching her face as she went through almost every emotion, sadness, anger, relief, happiness, fear, and apathy.

"The only thing I know for a fact is, I don't want to be alone any more…" She was sad as she said this, "I don't want to live on without other people beside me…" She lowered her face allowing her bangs to hide her features. 

Shinji was amazed; he had just absorbed everything that she had told him. _She's lived through all that?! How did she do it? She must've been very strong to get through life by depending only on herself… _He smiled at her and brushed away a lock of hair behind her ear. 

"You've got me…" She looked at him shocked, "Misato is here also, even though she drinks a lot and is working most of the time." He paused for a moment, unsure of how to go on, "Even Rei is here for you, although she is a bit quiet."

Asuka 'hmphed' when he mentioned Rei, "I have to rely on Wondergirl now do I?" Shinji was about to object when he saw the tiny smile on her face, "Well, I suppose I can change, it would be nice to have her as a friend."

Shinji smiled, "There, you see you do have friends around you!" He then looked a bit serious and spoke lower, "You know, if you want to talk, about anything, I'm only here on the lower bunk." He blushed a little when he said this, looking away slightly. 

"Arigatou Shinji!" Asuka hugged him tightly, leaving Shinji's arms in mid air, unsure of what to do. He returned the hug gently. Once they had parted a sharp knocking on the door disturbed them and in burst Misato.

"All right you two! Time for school!" They looked at their watches; it was nearly midday. 

"But why Misato!" Groaned Asuka, whining a little bit too much, "It's noon, why now?"

Misato looked serious, "For the duration of your time here, you will still have school lessons as usual. Your details have been despatched to the school principal, and today you have to introduce yourself to your fellow students. Ayanami will also be accompanying you." Misato moved out of the doorway to show Rei holding her satchel for school. "You clothes have books have already arrived from Tokyo-3, so you can leave now." She held out two maps, "This is a map of Mabase, our home and the school have been marked, so you choose the way to get there. I have to report to Maya for more details on the portable detecting device. I might not be here when you get back. Have a good day!" Misato then left the room. 

"Wait Misato!" Called Shinji, she poked her back into the room curiously, "What if there's an emergency?"

"Don't worry about that, just go to the front of the school and a NERV vehicle will pick you up. Bye now!" She left promptly.

Asuka and Shinji looked at each other depressively, "More schoolwork…" 

They picked up their satchels from downstairs where from nowhere several large boxes had appeared, books already inside them. Rei followed them into the foyer where they removed their slippers and put on their outdoor shoes. Leaving the house, and locking it behind them they went on their way. Looking at their maps they almost went in different directions before Rei spoke up, 

"It's this way." She said, pointing the way forwards. 

****

Several minutes later

The school grounds

Accepting her judgement the second and third children moved beside her. Asuka didn't make one cutting remark. Before long after a little more consulting of the map from Rei, they arrived at the school at the end of the lunch period. _Great, and I'm really hungry also…_ Shinji moaned. Walking inside the grounds they noticed a large scar on the side of one building, lots of girders and bricks piled up in one corner there. Moving around inside the made their way to the principal's office, whereby the secretary showed them straight in. 

"Aah, welcome children, have a good trip from Tokyo-3?" They mostly had looks of tiredness on their faces and said nothing, "Right well… your class is in Room 304, you will have all your lessons in there. Please go here now and introduce yourselves." Shinji nodded and they all left the room quietly. 

Walking along the corridors the found their way to the class quickly and knocked on the door. And man of no more than 25 years opened it in reply. He smiled as if enlightened, "Aah, I thought it was you, please come in."

Walking into the class they noticed quickly that it was rather full and instead focussed on the teacher who now spoke. "Students, please pay attention, these are three new people from Tokyo-3 who have come to join our classes permanently, I hope you welcome them warmly to our class. Now," He said turning to the three pilots, "please introduce yourselves." 

Each one spoke in turn, Asuka first, followed by Shinji then Rei. At that moment a large yell came from the back of the class.

"What!?!" someone was standing up and pointing at them. At first Shinji thought he was seeing things but after rubbing his eyes it was still the same person.

"Touji!" He said, his face brightening up. Two others either side of him stood up also.

"Hi Shinji." Said the spectacled Kensuke whilst Hikari waved demurely at Asuka. Walking over to them they noticed that the three empty seats were directly in front of their old friends. They were about to start talking before a loud cough from the front of the class stopped them.

"Well, it seems you already know these three, I hope you'll save the catching up till after the lesson." Shinji sat in front of Touji and unwillingly nodded, Asuka sat in front of Hikari and Rei, Kensuke. Shinji thought this would be an interesting lesson but his utter horror grew when he noticed the textbook that the teacher picked up. Looking at Asuka, they both knew what this meant and groaned inwardly. 

"So the Third Impact devastated the world. The rising sea level flattened cities, towns, and even entire countries. Weather patterns were disrupted permanently and a new era had begun, one of pain and suffering, but also one where mankind had to work together in order to survive…"

Shinji managed to snooze away by the end of this paragraph.


	9. When worlds come together…

****

Secrets should never be forgotten…

Chapter 9

When worlds come together…

One hour later

He was woken by a kick to the back of his chair; Touji smirked at him when Shinji turned around. "Wakey wakey Shinji." 

Looking to the front he noticed the teacher had left and was replaced by a female teacher who was chatting to a student at the front of the class. Most of the children were talking to one another. Elsewhere in the class, rumours were spreading about the new students. Why were they there? Who were they? Three boys in particular were talking about the women.

"Look at the red-head, she has such a nice body, I wish she'd give me a kiss!" Gaku went all hyper; pursing his lips like there was no tomorrow. 

Masashi disagreed, "No, I think the blue haired girl is more pretty, she has this air about her, a kind of grace that comes with a quiet girl. What do you think Naota?"

Naota gave both girls a glance and spoke up, "They're not my type." He said simply. 

"What?!" Gaku said, "You have girls hanging off you all the time, how can you not have a type!?" 

Naota looked at him, "I'm telling you, they left, I don't want to see either of them again." He spoke seriously.

Ninamori watched him carefully out of the corner of her eye whilst talking to her friends. _Hmm, looks like he has another bump on his head…_

A few rows back, the old friends were catching up. "So, what are you doing here Touji?"

The darker skinned boy unconsciously rubbed his left arm, "We came to Mabase a while back when we were ordered to leave Tokyo-3, our parents told us to leave and NERV ensured our safe passage here. Hikari's father moved here also, fearful for their lives after the last explosion there."

Kensuke moved closer, "I came here alone, my dad remained to continue working in NERV. He managed to persuade NERV to get me a small place."

Touji went on, "NERV then asked if I wanted to move and I said yes, so they transferred me to Mabase to live with Kensuke." He tapped his left leg. "They even gave me an artificial leg."

Shinji winced when Touji mentioned that, "Touji…" He started.

"Don't even think about it Shinji." Interrupted Touji, "You don't have to apologise, I know that you weren't in control of Unit-01." Touji smiled, "It's almost as good as the old one."

Kensuke piped in, "Yeah… My father said that they used some of the technology in the Evangelion in constructing the limb. It has LCL inside it!"

"Really?!" Shinji was astounded, then asked, "But how do you keep it fresh?" 

Touji spoke again, "I change the fluid daily when I remove it and replace it with the refills they gave me." He paused, "The only thing is that the LCL is a little heavier than normal, and has a slight delay. The limb is also slightly stiff."

"So the idiot trio is back together then?" The turned to see the red haired pilot behind them, arms on her hips Hikari had also moved closer to hear the replies. She looked stern but softened her expression upon seeing Touji's implant, "What have you been up to Mabase then?" She said, focussing on Kensuke and Touji.

Kensuke looked at her, "Well, very little, we live together so we buy food, cook for ourselves," Asuka scoffed at this point, "and cook good food I might add. We go to school when it's open."

Her expression changed to one of curiosity, "What do you mean 'when' it's open?"

"Well," Her pushed his glasses further up, hiding his eyes behind the lenses, "there have been many strange events around here. Robot sightings, arson attacks, and once even the school was attacked."

"Really?!" Shinji said worriedly.

"Yeah…" Kensuke went on, "The last two were almost deadly. A satellite nearly destroyed the Medical Mechanica plant, but somehow it was repelled back into space, not without a massive shockwave that destroyed many buildings near the plant." He looked straight at Shinji and spoke seriously, "I'm sure you're aware of the last event."

Shinji looked down, "So you saw then?"

"Yes, that was the worst out of all of them, many buildings were destroyed, and the hand still remains there." He looked left out of the window, where coincidentally Rei was looking. The large hand could clearly be seen, a little bit of movement beneath the massive fingers as technicians looked through it. 

"You won't believe the best of it though!" Touji said excitedly, "There's a person in our class who owns a robot of his own! A fit woman gives him lunch sometimes!"

Shinji looked to Touji in alarm and paled, "Wh… What did they look like?"

Touji described them to him, making Shinji more nervous and by the end he was shaking. 

Asuka noticed this first, "Shinji, what's wrong?"

"He looked to her, "Those were the people fighting the robot I fought…" He looked around the class.

They were all quiet until Asuka spoke first, "Do we call Misato now…? Or do we wait?"  
  
Rei then turned to them all, "I suggest we wait until the next enemy appears. From our observations the two people in question did not seem hostile to Unit-01." Touji and Kensuke grimaced, expecting Asuka to bite back, but instead.

"Maybe Wondergirl is right…" Asuka said almost to herself. Catching the looks of astonishment from Kensuke, Touji and even Hikari, she became slightly agitated from their stares, "What?!"

Elsewhere in the class, a debate was going on, "So, who'll ask her out first?" Masashi said. 

"I want to!" Gaku said, almost desperately.

"You guys go ahead…" _I'll just watch…_

Masashi and Gaku got up slowly and made their way to the back of the class. A few people stopped talking and turned to watch them, Ninamori being one of them. 

"Hi there," Masashi said to the children of Tokyo-3, "I'm Masashi and this is my friend Gaku. We thought we'd introduce ourselves."

Shinji shook the outstretched hand, "I'm Shinji, as you probably knew by now." 

"Pleased to meet you Shinji," Masashi said. He moved to Rei, "Hi there, I hope we become good friends." He said as he held out his hand. 

Rei looked at him neutrally giving away nothing, leaving Masashi slightly unnerved. _She's not even saying her own name… _He left to return to his seat.

Gaku immediately moved in on Asuka, "Hi there pretty lady," The three boys from Tokyo-3 winced, holding their heads despairingly and began to count down the time, "Would you give me a kiss?" He asked.

Touji spoke amongst themselves looking at his watch, "Five… four… three…"

Asuka smiled pleasantly at him, "Okay then…"

"Two…. One…"

Crunch. The fist of Asuka had found itself mysteriously embedded in Gaku's mouth. "This a German kiss, and if you dare say that again, I'll really begin to get angry." She spoke, anger cross throbbing on her forehead.

Gaku almost fell backwards from the blow, but someone stopped him. 

"Sorry about my friend here… He's a little desperate for a girlfriend." He sat Gaku down on a chair away from them, where he sat with his eyes swirling.

"Who might you be?" Asked an irate Asuka.

"Naota. Pleased to meet you." He held out a hand to Shinji first. _I don't want her to hit me… _Shinji shook his hand quickly. 

"What is this teacher like eh?" Asuka said indicating her with her thumb over her shoulder; the teacher was still chatting to some students in the front row.

"What lesson is this supposed to be?" Shinji asked genuinely.

"It's Miyaji-san's class. She's the most flexible of teachers, she teaches us whatever she wants, but when she doesn't feel like we she just talks to us about anything, and gives us the freedom to do anything we want."

Naota sat down in front of them, placing his chair back to front so he was leaning on the backside of the seat. "So what brings you here to Mabase?"

Asuka and Shinji weren't sure of what to say, but they were saved by Rei, "Our parents ordered us to evacuate from Tokyo-3, they didn't want us in danger." 

Asuka and Shinji knew that Misato must've briefed her to conceal the fact that they were pilots. Naota didn't want to pry any further. 

"Well, you were wrong in coming here then…" He said, almost a bit longingly.

"Why is that?" Shinji asked. 

"Things happen here… bad things…" His face became a bit more downcast when he said this. 

"Why're you bothering these people Naota?" The pilots looked up to see a purple haired girl staring down at them, "Sorry about him, he's been depressed lately, his girlfriend dumped him."

"Shut up Ninamori!" Naota yelled, and got up in a huff, returning to his friends. 

"My name is Ninamori Eri," she stated simply, "I hope your stay in Mabase is a pleasant one."

She was about to turn away before Shinji spoke up, "W… Wait!"

She angled her head to look at him, he continued, "Do you know anything about the strange events that have been happening around here recently?"

"Of course I do…" She said, turning her full attention on the pilots, "They all come from Naota's head."

Asuka and Shinji just gawped at her, "W… What do you mean?"

"It'll be easier to show you…" Walking up to the back on Naota, and giving them a clear view, she flipped his cap off. All they saw was a normal head of hair with a bandage on it, but almost straightaway a strange lump grew four inches high, and opened out into the shape of an umbrella, throwing away the restraints. 

"NINAMORI!" Naota was furious, and he tried to both press down the lump and grab his cap off her. 

"See?" She said to those who were watching, "He creates them…"

Naota had managed to steal it back off her and thrust it down on his head hard, forcing the lump down back into his head. Ninamori went back to her seat whereas Asuka and Shinji were both solid stone, sweatdropping badly. _This isn't true… How can that be? _

"I believe the Major would find this information very useful." Rei spoke up, directing her attention to the second and third children, "We should inform her when school finishes."

Shinji looked reluctant, "I think so too… but it's a shame considering we just met him."

"Hey Shinji…" Touji said, "You know that Naota you just spoke to?"

"Yeah, what about him?" Shinji asked.

"Well, he's the one who owns the robot and knows the fit girl."

Shinji began to rub his head; the information was coming thick and fast and he wasn't sure he could handle it. "Okay…. Let's just tell Misato all of this later, I don't think I can take any more revelations."

The bell rang, Miyaji was standing up at the front, "Okay children, that's enough for today, you're are all free to go home now."


	10. The build up to greater things…

****

Secrets should never be forgotten…

Chapter 10

The build up to greater things…

A few minutes later

Outside school grounds

"Well, be seeing you Shinji, we live over in this direction." Touji and Kensuke waved goodbye and walked in the opposite direction.

"I can walk with you for a short while." Hikari said as she walked beside Asuka.

Shinji and Rei walked in front of the two and said nothing to one another.

"So, you going to explain what those looks were at Touji, Hikari?" She looked suggestively at her old friend.

Hikari blushed furiously, "I… I… I think I love him…" Asuka was astonished.

"You're sure about this?" She asked tentatively.

"Yes, he's become stronger since being a pilot, not only outside but inside, he's had to cope with losing a leg." She looked sad, "True, he has the new leg, but he can't run about like he used to. I just want to be there for him…"

Hikari began to well up with tears before Asuka placed an arm around her, "If you feel that way, why don't you tell him?"

"I'm afraid of rejection…" Sniffed Hikari. 

"I don't think he will…" Asuka said teasingly, "He likes you also, but he's too proud to say it."

Hikari wiped her eyes with her hankie, "Arigatou Asuka, now…" She had a mischievous gleam in her eyes, "What's happened between you and Shinji?"

"What?!" Asuka replied guiltily, as if found out, her face turning bright red.

"Well, you act differently around him all the time, you're even being nice to Rei…" Hikari said, still smiling.

Asuka lowered her face, strands of hair covering her face, "We just talked and he helped me through some things, that's all…" She said unwilling to go any further.

"Asuka, it's not shameful to say that you like him," Hikari said, "I mean who wouldn't fall for Shinji…"

Asuka looked at her friend curiously, "I mean look at him, he's a pilot, he's quite handsome for his age… Look at those arms…"

"Hikari?!?" Asuka almost yelled, then became infuriated when she noticed her giggling.

"I was leading you on Asuka. You're jealous if even one girl focuses on him too much, why not claim him for yourself?" Hikari said kindly.

Asuka looked at Shinji in front of them, oblivious to their conversation, "Now is not the right time… Too many things are happening right now."

"Well," Hikari said hefting her satchel on her shoulder again, "don't leave it too long or you might never get the chance, who knows what the future might hold?" She stopped walking, "I have to go this way." The others stopped also, "I'll see you all soon." Hikari smiled and walked away after they said their goodbyes.

Asuka walked up to the other two children, "Asuka, what were you talking about back there? It seemed like a pretty deep conversation…"

Managing to stop the blood from rushing to her cheeks she said, "It was nothing! Don't poke your nose into other peoples business Shinji."

Reverting back to his old habit, he lowered his head, "Sorry Asuka…"

"Baka Shinji!" She said giving him a light slap around the back of his head, "Don't say sorry! There's nothing wrong with asking me a question."

Shinji held his head where she slapped him and smiled a little, "I guess you're right…"

"Of course I am!" She stated. She then nudged him slyly, "So what were you and Wondergirl talking about?" Her eyes were suggestive.

"Wh… What are you saying Asuka?" Shinji panicked predictably, "We weren't talking, really!"

"Is that true Wondergirl?" Asuka said, turning to Rei.

"Ikari-kun is correct, we have not been conversing with one another." She replied glancing at Asuka.

"Okay then, so all is well." Asuka smirked, hands on hips.

At that moment the Medical Mechanica plant began to leak steam at its usual time.

****

A few minutes later

Misato's apartment

They had returned to their new home and tired from the day, flipped off their shoes and went straight to their rooms after noticing that Misato wasn't back yet. Rei retired to her room in silence and the other two pilots went to theirs, surprised that their possessions were all there and unpacked. 

"Sorry Asuka, but I need a nap." Yawned Shinji, "Today's been a long day…"

Asuka felt tired also, "I think I'll rest as well…"

Climbing into their respective bunks they laid their heads back and fell straight to sleep, the exhaustion finally catching up with them.

****

Meanwhile

Elsewhere in Mabase

"You okay Gaku?" Masashi asked.

"Y… Yeah…" His mouth was bruised and a tooth had fallen out, "How am I going to explain this to my parents?"

"Tell the truth." Ninamori said, "They'll laugh at you but it will only last for a short while."

"I told you not to bother with either of them." Naota stated, "They're on a different level to us. I can't explain it, but somehow they've experienced more of the world than we have."

"In what way Naota?" Asked Masashi.

"I don't know…" He replied honestly.

****

Meanwhile

A few streets away a NERV van was racing through the streets, an unusual antenna on the roof of it.

"Are you sure the source is moving?" Misato yelled.

"Y… Yes ma-am," Maya replied, "We're following it closely."

"Intensity of the signal?" Misato asked whilst looking outside the windscreen. A Section 2 agent was driving following a computerised map near the dashboard.

"Same as before." Confirmed Maya.

Turning a final street they were approaching a group of four children walking on the pavement.

"So Naota, are you going to see Mamimi again?" Gaku asked.

Naota kept quiet, his fury rising.

"Well, are you? Huh? Is she going to give you a kiss eh? Kiss!" Gaku persisted.

Naota turned around in anger, "I told you. I DON'T WANT TO SEE MAMIMI AGAIN!!" He yelled so loud that it echoed throughout the street.

A few seconds of silence passed. The horn at the Medical Mechanica plant suddenly activated, and Naota felt something, a familiar thump. An explosion happened in his head. _Oh no! Not again… _Another one, this time louder and more forceful.

The NERV van skidded to a halt, the passengers looking on in surprise. 

"What the…" Misato began.

"Get away from me!" Naota yelled to his friends. 

The lump exploded out of his cap and grew exponentially. I became so heavy that it fell forward, the umbrella shape opening out in full.

"Naota!" Ninamori was concerned for his safety and ran towards him.

"No! Stay aw…!" They both screamed as they were flung up into the air, the robot still growing out of Naota's head as Ninamori held onto his arm.

The NERV watchers were beyond astonishment, they had never seen anything like this in their lives. Misato noticed in the middle of the umbrella where the peak should be, that the familiar insignia, two M's one on top of the other, was there.

Misato spoke, "Take me to my house, we need to get the children to the Evangelions." 

As the van sped off her expression changed to one of fear. She looked up at the massive object in awe, and at the tiny specks of the two children still stuck on it.

"It seems Medical Mechanica has made their next move…"

****

The bridge

Mabase

Across the city, people everywhere could see the rising handle of the umbrella shaped robot. One person in particular cooed admirably. 

"Ooh, that one looks big." 

The lavender haired girl, still in her school uniform stopped kicking stones into the river to look at the Medical Mechanica robot. Mamimi kept looking on neutrally as another person moved next to her. The boy, wearing dark trousers and a pale white shirt almost as white as his skin, looked at the robot also, but in utter disgust. He looked to the girl with his burning red eyes, his grey hair moving in the gentle breeze.

"You are Lilim, but not like ordinary Lilim."

The girl frowned at him, "What are you talking about?"

His expression changed to one of disdain, "You wish to destroy the Earth, the Lilim, for your own plans." He moved closer, his eyes piercing hers, "I won't allow it to happen. Even we don't wish to destroy the Lilim. They are a part of us."

He moved away from her, turning slowly, "We shall meet again, Mamimi." He said without looking at her.

Mamimi frowned again, "What a weird guy…"

****

----------------

Author's Notes

In a moment of inspiration, I decided to write out 21 sides of this fic. Splitting them up to make 5 new chapters I thought it would be time for the action to get started. 

I must admit, I'm taking liberties with Asuka here, she seems to have gone through a massive catharsis during this fic, being mentally disturbed, to vaguely normal. I know most of you (especially the hardcore NGE fans who wish for nothing to change the plot and characters) might object to this, but I thought it was the only way in which the fic could move forward. 

I really enjoyed writing the part when the children finally met one another. I can't wait to write the meeting of Kitsurubami and Katsuragi (who hold similar positions) as well as Gendo and Amarao. The SEELE and MM monoliths should be interesting also.

The action chapter should come next, don't know when I plan on writing that one, but who knows? 

Let me know what you think via reviews, criticisms and flames. Thank you for you time. 

Until then

- Jason


	11. Medical Mechanica VI – Part 1

**Secrets should never be forgotten…**

****

****

Chapter 11 

****

****

Medical Mechanica VI – Part 1

****

****

Seconds later 

**Mabase**

The NERV van careened across the streets of Mabase returning to her home where the three pilots were, unaware of what was happening. 

"Maya, what is the intensity of the signal?" Misato asked.

"It's still growing, but has not escalated to the same size as that of the previous readings…" Maya replied typing away on her laptop.

Misato looked ominous, "Get in contact with the NERV facilities here and initiate battle readiness. Make it so that Unit-01 is ready to be deployed at a moments notice."

"Ryoukai!" Maya called up the base and issued further instructions as the NERV van stopped outside the house.

Inside Misato's house 

Shinji and Asuka were having a light snooze, the sun lazily streaming in through the window. They were woken by a large slam and loud footsteps. The door burst open and Misato looked at the both of them. 

"Wake up you two!" She yelled, "We have an emergency!"

Shinji snapped his eyes open. _Oh no… Not again… _Asuka opened her eyes but knew that she couldn't help in any way. She couldn't see it yet, but she was worried. Misato had opened Rei's door more calmly and told her the news. Soon they were all out of their rooms in their ordinary clothes and walking down the stairs to the awaiting van.

"Move…" Spoke Misato to the Section 2 agent in the driving seat, "We'll get there quicker if I drive."

_Mein Gott… _Asuka thought before her stomach was left behind, the van squealing off towards the makeshift base.

**One minute later**

**NERV Base-M**

"We're here!" Misato cheerily said. 

Everyone walked or staggered out of the van. The Section 2 agent, unused to her driving had to run behind a bush to throw up, his digestive system being ravaged by the speeds they attained. Maya who had been in a car with Misato once knew what to expect, but she still walked unsteadily, her legs wobbly and clutching her laptop close to her chest. Asuka and Shinji were paler than usual, many strands of hair deviating from the scalp at odd angles. Rei seemed normal, no paler than she usually was, although one strand of hair was standing straight up on her head, a small kink in it. Glancing back to the battered van, she saw her reflection and patted down the errant hair.

Misato strode immediately towards the holding chamber for Unit-0 beckoning for everyone to follow her. Like a typical airport, the semi-cylindrical building opened the door to allow the people in. Shinji gasped, it was almost an exact replica of the inside of NERV Headquarters. Unit-01 was in a deep pool of red-pink fluid, the mechanisms built to insert the Entry Plug. Misato went to a small metal locker and withdrew a familiar outfit.

"Here are your plug suit and hair connectors Shinji-kun." She spoke seriously and pointed with a thumb behind her, "Go behind that curtain and change into it quickly."

"H… Hai." He stumbled off towards there and closed the curtain. 

Misato turned to Maya, "Energy readings?"

"Still growing, but soon reaching the level it was before." The brown haired tech replied.

"Any clues as to its offensive weaponry?" Misato asked.

"No, nothing as of yet," Her laptop was making regular beeps, "The Magi have no idea of what to expect from this enemy."

"I see…" Misato pondered. 

"I'm ready…" Shinji stated, his clothes neatly folded as he was now wearing the plug suit and hair connectors.

"Good Shinji-kun." Misato cracked a smile at him, "Let's go to Unit-01…"

They all walked there together, Misato and Shinji moving closer to the Entry Plug whilst the two other pilots and Maya watched on. Shinji clambered into the Entry Plug and looked at Misato who was looking at him oddly.

"Good luck Shinji-kun…" Her eyes seemed to be welling up. Shinji didn't know what to make of this.

"A… Arigatou Misato." He answered hesitantly.

The seal closed on the Entry Plug and the automated procedures moved it into the back of Unit-01. Pressing a button in the hastily constructed command centre, the Entry Plug rolled into place inside Unit-01. After the LCL filled up the plug Shinji felt the usual sensory bombardment of being linked to Unit-01 as synchronisation was initiated. 

"Synch Ratio at 83% and holding." An unknown technician reported.

"So he hasn't changed much since last time then…" Misato wondered to herself.

Asuka and Rei were in the command centre, not having an Evangelion meant that Rei couldn't pilot yet, and Asuka had such a poor sync ratio that she couldn't link to Unit-02, which was held in the same fluid in another hangar. Rei stood there, impassive as always whilst Asuka's lips trembled slightly at seeing Shinji's ratio. _How does he continue to do it? Even when all this is happening he manages to stay focused…_

Shinji however wasn't thinking these things at all; he was still confused as to how he would leave the base. A small window opened up on his left showing Misato.

"Shinji-kun, we're going to open the ceiling and you will automatically be raised to ground level. Once done, try not to step on us as you leave." She laughed half-heartedly at this, "Head straight for Mabase and engage the robot. Don't let it escape." Her voice was firm.

"Hai." Shinji gripped the controls as he felt the Evangelion shudder from the elevators underneath it, the sun beginning to stream into the hangar as the ceiling pulled back. Doing as he was told he walked carefully and didn't make a false move before moving out beyond the hangar. Another window blinked on, this time it was Maya.

"Shinji, use the pistol we will provide you now and keep it away from destroying more buildings. If you run out of bullets use the spare clips, then the progressive knife." She stayed on the screen for a few more second, and Shinji couldn't help but notice Asuka's expression as she stood behind Maya. 

Looking to the ground he noticed two large lorries travelling towards him side by side. They then stopped and the tops of them spilt open revealing a pistol in one and two clips in the other. Picking up the pistol and one of the clips, he loaded the gun easily. The spare clip he placed inside the shoulder carrier, the one that didn't already contain the progressive knife. Gun in hand he ran towards Mabase and the robot that had finally finished growing. 

**A few minutes earlier**

**On top of MM VI**

"Naota!" Ninamori cried, "Are you okay?"

"Yes!" He yelled back, struggling to hold his grip, "But why did you grab onto me?! I told you to stay away!"

"I…" Ninamori couldn't reply to him, not wanting to reveal her feelings for him.

Naota managed to stand up only to fall onto his back again as the machine beneath continued to grow. Noticing a circular groove he sat in there.

"Eri…" He called her by her first name, "It's safer here…"

She tried to act nonplussed at the fact that he used her first name but walked towards him jittery. She sat down next to him.

"So… This looks like another big one then…" She spoke seriously.

"Yeah…" Naota looked up to the sky, "I wonder how many people will die this time…"

They were quiet for a time before Ninamori spoke up.

"Naota… Why did you call me by my first name?"

"Well…" He blushed for no apparent reason, "I just wanted to get your attention… Besides…" He sneaked a smile in, "It's a nice name."

Ninamori blushed again and turned away from him to hide her embarrassment. When she did so she noticed something in the distance. 

"Naota… What's that?"

He looked to where she was pointing and saw a large mecha, purple and black in colour. It stood as tall as the robot they were on, and it ran towards them with a gun in hand. The Medical Mechanica robot sensed this and moved suddenly, causing the two children to fall. Shinji from within the plug could see them falling, but he also knew he couldn't get to them in time. Zooming in he recognized them straightaway.

"Naota… Ninamori…"

The two of them were falling, screaming. Naota knew he would die, but realised he had someone looking over him. He yelled out the name of his saviour.

"CANTI!"

From nowhere the blue robot flew up from the streets and Shinji watched in surprise as Naota was literally eaten by the smaller robot. The colour smoothly changed to one of blood red and looked down sharply, then flew straight down. Catching Ninamori in his arms he flew her safely away from the battle, the same place to which Gaku and Masashi ran to, beside the river. Once they moved away from the Medical Mechanica robot, Shinji began to shoot at it, Unit-01 precariously placed on roads with buildings in the way. Canti looked to the gunshots and patted Ninamori on her head, then took off to help in the battle. 

The umbrella covering closed and then opened quickly, flinging the robot up into the air, covering the sun for a short while. It hovered there for a short while and the handle leaned towards Unit-01. Without any warning, a massive beam of light emanated from the handle, blasting straight into the chest of Unit-01. 

"AAAAH!" 


	12. Medical Mechanica VI – Part 2

**Secrets should never be forgotten…**

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****

Chapter 12 

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Medical Mechanica VI – Part 2

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**Meanwhile**

**NERV Base-M**

"What was that?" Asuka yelled.

Maya was running some analysis on the attack. "It seems to be a variant of the particle beam Shinji met with the Fifth Angel…" She paused for a second glancing at a blanched Misato, "The intensity is less, the chest plate of Unit-01 isn't penetrated as bad like the last time, but a few layers have been burned."

"St… Status of Shinji-kun?" Misato was sweating in fear.

"Heartbeat slightly erratic from the impact. His pain receptors in his chest are above normal levels; however he's fine apart from that."

"Open a channel." Misato ordered.

**Inside Unit-01**

The entry plug flickered as the beam vanished, Shinji clutched his chest. He knew he wasn't hurt, but still, the pain was there and he couldn't ignore it or block it out of his mind. He was distracted by the familiar sound of an incoming transmission. Opening his eyes he noticed Misato looking at him sternly, but her eyes showed concern. 

"Shinji-kun, are you okay?"

"Hai Misato," He winced once, "Just give me a moment and I'll get back in there."

"Okay then Shinji-kun." She smiled at him.

The window closed off and Shinji looked up at the robot. He had scored direct hits on it without even knowing it, the large umbrella covering showing a few holes in it, throwing the robot off course and tilting to one side. The beam still continued however, many buildings in the way were vaporised. Shinji was about to act before Canti flew in, transformed into a cannon and then fired at the handle. Sure enough, the projectile smashed into it, causing the beam to stop. The Medical Mechanica robot flew back and landed away from the buildings, the opposite end of town from the plant. 

Unit-01 ran towards it, avoiding all the cars and people by jumping over the remaining buildings onto empty ground. The robot stood up oddly enough on the handle and balanced perfectly. Still feeling the burn of the earlier attack Shinji moved the butterfly handles and made Unit-01 fire the pistol. He was shocked though when the robot jumped up and shielded itself with the sheeting that had somehow reinforced itself. Ejecting the empty clip Unit-01 reached up to the shoulder carrier and the spare clip popped out much in the similar way to the progressive knife. Snapping the clip into place Shinji resumed his gunfire but made no dents on the robot. Clicking after the last round had gone he saw the robot begin to spin around like a top. Throwing away the gun he withdrew the progressive knife and prepared himself. Canti flew up to his left and converted into the cannon. Firing off the only round Shinji watched as it went straight for the umbrella covering, and then bouncing off it harmlessly. Canti hurried after it, not wanting to lose his only bullet. 

Suddenly, the top began to speed towards Unit-01, worrying Shinji and those in the base. A window blinked on inside the Entry Plug.

"Shinji!" Maya shouted, "Activate your AT-Field! The edge of that sheeting would cut through your armour!"

Widening his eyes in realisation, Shinji drew back and tried to remain calm as he created the barrier. The top went straight into it, the distinctive orange planes reflecting around the contact area. The sheeting began to glow white after a short while and this worried Shinji.

"Misato! What's happening to it?"

A window popped up, "Maya thinks that it's creating an AT-Field of its own…" She looked to her right for a few seconds hen turned back quickly, "Shinji! It's going to break through!"

He jerked his head back and as she said, the AT-Field was indeed breaking apart, the edge slicing its way past the barrier. Shinji knew time would run out, so he stabbed the progressive knife into the sheeting that had already made its way in. The problem was that it moved so fast that it made no difference, the knife shattering upon coming into contact with the surface. Extending it again, it broke without any effect. Dropping it quickly, he saw the yellow plane flicker once and then it vanished.  

"SHINJI!" Misato cried.

"AAAAH!" Shinji screamed.

Unit-01 had grabbed hold of the edge trying to push it back but it was still pushing forwards, cutting into the metallic plating of the hands, yellow sparks flying from the slashing action. 

_Keep pushing… Keep pushing… _Shinji was straining to push, his hands were bearing red slices on them, he could see the blood seeping out from them and diluting in the LCL as he pushed them against the controls. _Close… Close…_

Unit-01 then clamped down on the spinning sheet, the metal on the fingertips being scraped away from the movement. The top was spinning slower but not enough. Unit-01 raised its right foot and kicked at the handle, making a large dent in it and kicked it again a few hundred metres back, the top moving erratically. On the way Canti had finally retrieved the Naota missile and placed a few good kicks to the broken part of it, finally becoming the launcher again and firing at point black range. The Medical Mechanica robot flew back further as the missile returned into Canti, crashing into the hill in the background, the dented part breaking off completely. 

The red robot flew towards it, fists forward to finish it off, however the large robot opened the sheeting and closed it when Canti flew in. This was slowly crushing the smaller robot, and would've succeeded were it not for Unit-01 who leapt in and ripped open the sheeting, releasing Canti. Shinji made Unit-01 catch Canti, who looked worse for wear and whilst squeezing the sheeting and pushing it further away, he placed Canti away from the action. Turning back to the sixth Medical Mechanica robot, Shinji's heart slowed down as it changed before his eyes. The sheeting split off at five sections and rolled together to form five large appendages. The handle grew and opened up to show an optical receptor, an eye which stared ahead. 

"A hand…" Shinji gasped before screaming again. 

The hand had wrapped itself around Unit-01 as if it were a child's toy and began to press harder. The limbs of Unit-01 were tight around the body and couldn't move. Shinji was also in the similar position, his breathing becoming more ragged. _No… room to breathe… I'm dying… _He lost consciousness; the lack of oxygen reached his head making him black out. 

**Meanwhile**

**NERV Base-M**

"Secondary layer has been pulverised, tertiary layer on the verge of collapse."

"Power output from the Medical Mechanica robot has increased tenfold."

"No response from the smaller red robot, still immobile."

"Right arm has been dislocated."

"Pilot of Unit-01 has lost consciousness."

"Sync ratio has fallen dramatically."

"All remote contact has been lost to the entry plug."

"Unable to eject plug or sever neural links."

"Life support systems ten seconds from failure."

Asuka watched as this folded out, completely speechless. _Shinji… _Her eyes were glistening as one or two tears grew before silently slipping out over her cheeks. Rei's emotions on the outside were neutral; however a string of memories came to her.

_Shinji protecting her from falling pieces of the ceiling_

_Unit-01 being attacked by the Fifth Angel_

_Rei running into the Fourteenth with an N2 bomb_

_Rei saying "I will protect you" to Shinji_

_Tears of sadness as Rei destroyed herself and Unit-00_

_What does this all mean? _Her expression changed to one of a frown as her head tried to make sense of all these memories that she couldn't remember. In front of her, two ladies were worrying. Maya continued to report details as the other technicians spoke about specific problems. Misato was whiter than ever, a window was open to the Entry Plug, flickering constantly as she saw what was happening to the boy inside there. She couldn't take any more.

"SHINJI!" She yelled, tears at the edges of her eyes. The window instantly blinked off. 

"Unit-01 has reactivated!" Maya yelled out surprised.

"S2 Organ generating unusual power output."

"Pilot sync ratio still at zero percent."

"All contact with pilot still lost."

"Oh no…" Misato gasped. The viewer showing the only camera to view the battle saw the battle roar of Unit-01, "Its gone berserk… With the power of the S2 Organ."

**Meanwhile**

**The battlefield**

Unit-01 began generating extra power in the S2 Organ. The eyes blinked a dazzling white and it roared, all teeth being bared. The fingers of the hand were shaking and finally burst open as Unit-01 broke free. Looking to his right arm Unit-01 saw the broken part and whipping it to the right, the joint was healed completely. Roaring again it ran straight at the robotic hand, both arms poised to grab something. The hand landed on its fingers, and jumping up it did a midair loop and then flicked Unit-01, causing it to fall backwards. As it fell to the ground, using its hands to keep it elevated, Unit-01 delivered a roundhouse kick and hit the hand dead centre causing it to fall towards the city. 

**Meanwhile**

**NERV Base-M**

"Right arm restored!"

"Impact sustained to left quadrant of facial template."

"Medical Mechanica robot fractured slightly at point of impact."

"Medical Mechanica robot falling towards Mabase."

Everyone was looking at the screen in awe. Asuka remembered the last time she saw that, the video replay of after the fourteenth Angel had nullified two of the Evangelions, and supposedly Unit-01. Then it went berserk, and ate the Angel, but not before attacking it with full strength. 

"Not the city!" Misato cried.

**At that moment**

**The battlefield**

A shadow crept over the buildings of Mabase as the incredible size of the Medical Mechanica robot began to block out the sun as it fell to earth. Well, that is if Canti hadn't shown up to divert it away from the buildings. As it was falling onto a plain piece of earth, Canti transformed into the cannon took aim and fired. Yet the Medical Mechanica robot learned quickly, the eye noticed this and took precautionary measures. Opening up four of the arms, the protective shielding was restored and the missile was deflected away from the robot. Canti tried to go after it, but the final arm struck him harshly and instead Canti ended up ploughing through a building and into a road, a large crater being formed. The missile landed inside the grounds of the NERV base, and a few teams were sent to investigate.

The hand turned to Unit-01, breathing smoke from its mouth. Calculating his chances, he preferred to achieve his primary objective. Running away using the fingers as legs he ran around the city, heading straight for the plant. Unit-01 roared again and took off after it, unable to catch it before the robot launched itself into the air again, becoming an umbrella once again to float towards the plant. Roaring in frustration, Unit-01 ran towards it and did a massive leap. Somehow it managed to grab the robot and landed on a few buildings near the plant. 

The landing caused a minor earthquake, and a few pieces of masonry fell from buildings, a few tree branches falling on Canti, where a small crowd had gathered. Waking up he held his head and looked around. Then a symbol appeared on his monitor, flickering for a second before vanishing. A recollection of memory and then Canti was running off to the house he used to live in. 

Unit-01 tore into the Medical Mechanica robot, punching, kicking, and tearing. The hand tried in vain to stop it, one of the fingers punching the Evangelion in the face repeatedly until Unit-01 grabbed the finger and promptly broke it off at the knuckle. It was a massacre of robotic parts, electrical circuits, metal plating, and some organic material; all the pieces lay strewn around the front of the plant. 

Meanwhile, Canti had reached the Nandaba household, and ran to Naota's room, and found what he was looking for, the triangular shaped guitar that he used against the last robot.

Ready to finish it off, Unit-01 lifted up the former indestructible robot, its fingers now just some loose wires, sparks and metallic girders for joints, the eye blinked once as it stared into the whites of Unit-01's. Roaring a final time it threw it up in the air and pummelled it with the most powerful punch to date, straight in the eye. The robot flew backwards over the city, bits of machinery falling over the buildings and roads. The eye still functioned, glowing sporadically and persisting with gathering data before a red object came into its vision. Canti had the guitar and drove it straight through the eye, destroying it completely. The eye flickered more now that its lens had been shattered, and eventually gave in and shut down. The robot fell to the ground just outside the suburbs, finally expiring, its life source having been ruined beyond repair. 

Unit-01 stood there, arms hanging loosely as the Evangelion continued to slouch, and its breath of smoke could be seen over the city as the searchlights of the Medical Mechanica factory behind it one by one powered off. 

**Meanwhile**

**NERV Base-M**

"Medical Mechanica robot is silent."

"Red robot has disappeared off our sensors, last seen heading into Mabase."

"S2 Organ power output decreasing."

"Link to Entry Plug re-established."

Maya immediately looked at the readings of the pilot. "Shinji is fine, he's just unconscious."

To add to that a view into the entry plug opened up, showing Shinji seemingly collapsed in his seat. 

"Maya…" Misato began, "Get the extraction teams there on the double and have Shinji transferred to the hospital facilities here. Remove Unit-01 and do whatever repairs you need to do." She turned away and began to walk out, "I need to see that missile for myself."

Having nothing else to do Asuka followed Misato out, Rei close behind the red haired pilot. Getting into a NERV jeep, Misato beckoned to the two pilots to get in. once they did, she drove off, quite slowly for her, to the destination. 

 A large crater was seen in the base, several metres deep. In the epicentre was a glowing red sphere; it reminded Misato of a marble as she walked up to the edge of the crater curiously, the two pilots flanking her. At that moment the missile began to gurgle, causing a few of the NERV security staff to point their weapons at it, ready for anything. The shape slowly changed and soon became the form of a child, who looked unconscious. 

Misato pointed at the boy in shock. "Th… That's the boy I saw earlier!"

Asuka looked at the hunched form of the figure below her, the face turning to her for the first time. Recognition crept into her mind.

"Naota?"

-------------

**Author's Notes**

Two new chapters detailing the fight between Medical Mechanica and NERV. Hopefully the details are such that you can picture the battle in your mind. I tried not to give too much favouritism to any side (that is, NGE and FLCL) in the fight, so hopefully I gave both Canti and Unit-01 a fair share of the battle. 

The next chapter will detail many fact that are present in the FLCL universe that we all know, but brought about in an interesting way in the NGE universe. One word will be the clue for all this. Marduk. If you can, you might just guess what it is I'm implying, although nothing will come off it. 

A bit sad though, this section is so underrated that no one likes to review a lot here, so please, let me know your thoughts on this.

Until later,

- Jason


	13. Repose after the tempest

**

Secrets should never be forgotten...

Chapter 13

** **

Repose after the tempest

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Midday

NERV Base-M

Primary Medical Ward 

The constant beeping sounds of monitoring machines ran through the cold stale room. A Section 2 agent was seated by the door, he was watching the young boy who was hooked up to these machines. His eyes opened slowly quietly adjusting to the soft lighting around him, his eyes taking in the surroundings. The guard perked up upon seeing some activity from the child. His left hand reached into his coat and he pulled out a radio.

"He's awake." He stated simply. 

He replaced the radio and continued to sit there, closing his eyes again which his sunglasses hid. The boy looked around but was in pain as he tried to sit up, so he didn't bother trying and continued to lie down on the bed. A minute later the door opened and a purple haired girl came walking in rather quickly. 

"Hey what are you...?" The Section 2 agent placed a firm hand on her shoulder, causing the girl to face him with a fiery gaze. 

"Let her be..." Misato said from the doorway. The agent then promptly removed his hold on her. 

Walking up to Naota she smiled, "So, you're okay then?"

He shunned Ninamori, turning away, "What do you care for?"

"Well..." She recalled what made him happy the last time, "You were quite cool when you piloted that robot."

He did indeed blush, "It made no difference... I don't remember anything after getting into him."

She raised an eyebrow, "So why do you?"

"I don't know..." _Mamimi liked Canti... No that can't be why... _Naota sat there in shock at this discovery. He looked up to Ninamori, "I had to save our lives, the only way I can do that is by piloting Canti."

Ninamori stood there in silence, her arms still folded. Naota looked around him.

"What time is it?" He asked.

Looking at her analogue watch, she quoted the time, "Quarter past twelve, you've been out for an hour or so."

He smirked, "What took you so long to get here then?"

A scowl appearing on her usually passive face, she dragged a chair and sat on it, arms still folded on the back of it as she sat, "You landed in a military base belonging to an organisation known as NERV, after leaving Canti as that missile."

"NERV?" Naota remarked, a faint memory of hearing that name in one of his lessons coming to the surface.

"Yes..." Ninamori continued, "They bought out the land from the town council, but my father demanded that I be allowed to see you before you are taken away."

"Taken away..." Naota repeated, "WHAT?!"

"Questioning. They want to know how you pilot Canti." She stated bluntly. 

"Hmph, it makes no difference, I don't why I can pilot him, they can ask what they like, I can't help them there." 

There was silence for a few moments until a nurse came in, her face hidden behind a face mask; she checked the monitors and generally looked over Naota, who complied with her in a bored fashion, still looking outside the door to where the Section 2 agent stood beside Misato. Walking out the nurse stated that he was fit to be seen by them; Misato nodded and dismissed her. As the NERV employees moved into the room, the nurse rounded a corner and removed her hat and surgical mask. Smiling menacingly, her teeth becoming sharper and thinner, she ran a hand through her pink-peach coloured hair.

"So he's being looked after by NERV is he? We'll see about that..."

Walking into a room just before the exit she came out dressed in some familiar clothes and a guitar strapped to her back. Opening the emergency exit she jumped onto a yellow Vespa and sped off towards Mabase, away from the base.

**

Meanwhile

Unknown location

**

The darkness stirred as three monoliths materialised, the SEELE members numbering 02, 07 and 09. 

"The arrival of the new foe has forced me to bring forward our finding to this day." 02 began, "I suggest we share information over the interests of Kihl."

09 spoke up after a short pause, "I've managed to gain access to his financial details, though I was unable to make a permanent link due to tracers. His funds are mainly going to the usual places, politicians, military personnel, environmental groups, and of course the manipulators regarding funding for Tokyo-3. The construction of the Eva-Series is in separate file completely, the allocation being the same as it always was. There is no change in his personal funds."

07 disagreed, "I'm not so sure, I have been perusing his personal section, and have noticed a sharp increase in the funding of an unknown project while he reduced expenditure in other areas."

02 sounded disturbed, "Project, what sort?"

07 elaborated, "His investment and influence has spread across the physics world, buying up shares in major laboratories globally, a particular predominance in space phenomena, black holes and investigation into dark matter."

The two other monoliths mumbled to themselves, not knowing what this could mean. 02 broke the uneasy silence.

"The meeting is about to begin, let's depart and open the public channel."

The monoliths vanished. A minute later all the SEELE members had surfaced in the blackness. There was silence for a few moments before SEELE 01 spoke up. 

"The sixth Medical Mechanica robot has been defeated. Unit-01 and the smaller red robot known as Canti worked together to defeat it."

SEELE 04 spoke, "Kihl, this is incomprehensible, why is there another foe?"

SEELE 01 replied, "Another force has come, more deadlier than the Angels..."

SEELE 08 was outraged, "What?! I don't understand!"

SEELE 03 agreed, "What about Instrumentality? How will this be affected?"

SEELE 11 added, "Tabris has been sent to Mabase, he will decide the time and place."

The SEELE members for once in their lives were worried, a general murmuring and complaining undertones. This went on for a minute or two before a new monolith appeared, hovering above and behind SEELE 11 and angled towards them, as if looking down on them. The sky blue of the monolith contrasted the navy blue of its writing, one letter 'M' above another, the letters III and then 'SOUND ONLY' below that.

"These earthlings... All they talk about is their own safety, not that of their underlings." The voice came out distorted and of a lower pitch, as if spoken by a machine but fluently. The SEELE members by now had completely silenced themselves.

Another one became visible, this time above and behind SEELE 03, exactly the same in appearance except for the number, II. 

"Such pitiful creatures." The voice was disguised the same way as the first, but it was unmistakably female, "The politics of these organisms fascinates me over the duration and irrelevance of their arguments."

SEELE 01 finally broke the veil of shock that had passed over the lower group, the monolith vanishing only to be replaced with the figure of Kihl, "Who are you?" He stated simply.

The final monolith appeared behind SEELE 06 and 07, directly opposite SEELE 01, the number being the Roman numeral I. The voice was male, and evoked a certain power the others didn't have; he was obviously the leader. 

"We are Medical Mechanica."

**

One hour later

NERV Base-M

Interrogation Room One

**

A solitary figure sat in an uncomfortable metal chair, one beam of light placed directly above him. 

"So..." A female voice echoed from the darkness. "You claim you don't know how you pilot?"

"I told you!" Naota said, getting more agitated, "Once he eats me, I don't remember anything!"

"I see..." Ritsuko said, in a tired voice. "Well, that'll be all for now Nandaba-kun..." 

The darkness lifted and the only exit was opened as Section 2 agents came in. Naota got up of the seat, and walked sullenly to the exit, flanked by the agents as he was taken back to his cell.

**

Gendo's Office

**

"Report, Ritsuko." Gendo stated.

The doctor, also with two agents beside her, began. "Naota states that he has been inside of Canti no less than five times. The primary weapon is an impervious projectile. After transforming into a cannon, Naota himself is used as the projectile. However the main weakness of this is if Canti cannot retrieve the missile, then he cannot fire any more." 

"Has Canti been able to operate without its pilot in these cases?" Gendo asked.

"Naota says yes, that Canti does work without him, in the last two robots we saw, Canti did attack without Naota, using a guitar..." Ritsuko realised how ridiculous this sounded. 

"I see..." Gendo paused, "Could it be similar to the Dummy Plug system?"

"Unlikely..." Ritsuko replied scathingly. She took a few moments, letting her anger simmer away, before continuing. "From what Naota has told us, Canti does work without him inside. He used to work as the maid of his home, before disappearing. When there was a threat, he entered Canti and from eyewitness reports, Canti changed colour, he became red. Only then he did use the attack options."

"Interesting..." Gendo grinned, as if amused, "What about its origin?"

"Naota says 'He came from nowhere'." Ritsuko read, her voice becoming confused.

Becoming serious, Gendo stood up. "Would the Marduk report identify him as one of the Children?"

Ritsuko, stunned by this, faltered. "I... I'm... not sure..."

Gendo turned around, facing a wall with more religious symbols. "Test the boy. If he is suitable, label him the Sixth Child."

Ritsuko bowed, but then snapped up. "Sixth?! Don't you mean Fifth?"

Gendo angled his head, only a smirk was visible. "The Fifth has arrived in Mabase..." He looked back to the wall; Ritsuko took this as a sign that the meeting was over. Leaving his office, the agents following her every move, the door slid shut, pale light filtering in from unknown sources into the office.

"SEELE has played their final hand at last. I wonder if Kihl's well laid plans will survive the Medical Mechanica threat..." He smiled menacingly. "This shall make things more intriguing..."

**

Meanwhile

Cell B

**

A lonely Naota was sitting on a tattered bed, his chin resting on his hands. 

"Why am I here?" He mumbled. "I didn't do anything wrong..." He looked up to the ceiling, where the lamp was casting its fluorescent light over the room. "I saved everyone, didn't I?"

A sharp click and the door swung open, letting some cool, fresh air in. "Naota-kun, you're needed to try something..." Misato said.

Lazily getting to his feet, he dragged his way out of the cell into the metallic corridor. Misato smiled at him. "A cell is no place for a boy like you. You should be out with your friends."

Naota looked to her, and was reminded of where her smile came from. The few women in his life had all smiled at him at one point. Mamimi, Haruko, and from a long time ago, his mother. Ninamori had never smiled around Naota. The smile was one of friendship.

"You don't know me..." He replied rudely. "I can do whatever I want with my life."

Misato quite affronted, grew redder around the cheeks. She lowered herself so that she was face to face with him. "You little brat!" She said. "You're not as cute as Shinji-kun."

"You mean..." The name registered in Naota's brain. "Ikari Shinji?"

"Course I do!" She drew up to her full height, and placed her hands on her hips. "I live with him!"

Allowing gravity to take over his jaw, Naota gaped at her. "He... and you... live in the same house?" He took in her appearance. Black skirt with a red jacket with a logo on it. "Aren't you a bit old for him?"

Again, Misato did not take this well; growing more infuriated by the cheek. "Come with me." She said and stalked off to the command centre, Naota close behind her. Once entering there, she saluted the commander of NERV, who sat in his usual higher position. 

"Nandaba Naota is here." She stated.

Gendo stood up and glared down at him through his tinted glasses. "Nandaba Naota. You have been found trespassing in NERV property, and undertaking in a battle alongside our forces. For this reason you have been listed as a liability. Any leak of top secret information regarding this base to anyone outside of NERV would be considered treason, and is punishable by death, without trial." Naota took this in and began sweating unnecessarily. "However..." Gendo paused. "You might have an ability which few possess, and we would like to test you on that."

"Ability?" Naota asked. "Of what?"

"To pilot an Evangelion." Gendo merely stated. 

**

Ten minutes later

Test Plugs

**

Naota was now wearing a familiar plug suit that four others have worn before. It was green with yellow extremities. He was sitting in a test plug with the butterfly handles. A window with Misato flicked on in the plug.

"Okay Naota-kun." She began. "We're going to start now."

Immediately, the plug began to fill with LCL fluid. Naota panicked. "What is this?!" He cried before holding in some breath.

"It's to make you synchronise properly..." Misato cringed. _Just like Shinji-kun... _"Just breathe normally and you'll be fine."

Doing so, Naota adjusted quickly. Maya looked to the controls, with Ritsuko overseeing her. "Begin testing!" Ritsuko spoke, and Maya pressed all the buttons necessary to begin the process. 

"Sit back and relax Naota-kun, it might make you feel weird." Misato said in a nicer tone. Flicking off the monitor, she mumbled, "How can I be old? I'm not even thirty..." Maya heard this and smiled at the whiney tone Misato had. Ritsuko, too engrossed in the figures and beyond caring, didn't. 

Naota was still sitting there after five minutes, as various lights flickered on and off in the plug, showing computers, heart monitors, and other details. Eventually it showed the area around him in the monitors. 

Ritsuko smirked. "Hmph, I thought so..." In front of all of them was a large window, blinking '0% SYNC Rate' in red.

Misato smiled in a comically evil way. "Well, at least that little brat doesn't have to pilot..." Her expression became solemn. _At least he doesn't have to suffer like Shinji-kun... _Flicking on the connection to the entry plug she spoke to the failed applicant for the Marduk project. "Naota-kun, you can come out now. Go for a shower, you'll need it to get the LCL out of your hair."

Doing so he moved out of the plug and followed the signs to the changing rooms. As people began to shut things down in the testing area, one person removed a small transmitter from underneath one of the control panels. She immediately left the room and then the base quietly. 

**

One minute later

Men's Changing Room

**

Naota, dripping with the orange fluid, walked into the shower with the plug suit, changing out of it there to get rid of the LCL, using a special shampoo. Drying and covering himself with the towel provided, he walked out to the locker room, where his clothes were hanging outside. He was surprised to see someone else there.

"Ikari..." 

Shinji, happy to see a friendly face, smiled and spoke in a happy tone. "Nandaba-san! What are you doing here?"

Naota remained glum. "They did some tests on me..."

Shinji sympathised and also became grim. "Synchronisation tests?" He asked.

"Yeah..." Naota took several seconds to realise what Shinji said, and started, "Wait! You've been tested before?"

Shinji smiled wryly, "You could say that..." Shinji opened a locker with his name on it and looked pleased. "Ahh... Found it..." He pulled out a tape recorder and headphones. "Well, I'd better go home, or Misato might want to cook..." A grimace shuddering through his face.

"You live with Misato-san?!" Naota still couldn't believe it. "Isn't she too old for you?"

Shinji looked perplexed. "It's not like that... She's my guardian..." Another frown crossed his features as the image of his father flashed through his mind. 

"Did your mother... die...?" Naota looked down, his eyes shadowed by the wet hair.

Shinji didn't flinch, much to his own amazement. "She died when I was young, I don't remember much of her..." More images of the past, the first initialisation test of Unit-01, his mother vanishing inside of it. "She's still with me though..." The faint glimmer of a smile came back. 

"My mum died when I was young too... I don't remember her..." Naota stared off into the horizon. "But my dad took care of me..." Naota looked to Shinji. "What about your father...?"

"He's commander of NERV..." Shinji spoke quickly, and with a note of finality.

Naota chose not to pry further. "The weird guy with glasses eh?" He smirked.

Shinji, despite himself, cracked a full smile, "Yeah, that's the one..." Glancing at his watch he spoke again. "Well, I should go now, see you in school Nandaba-san."

"Call me Naota, Shinji." He replied.

"Okay... Bye Naota." Shinji opened the door and left the changing room. 

Naota began to change into his clothes. _Shinji... Interesting guy..._

**

5 minutes later

NERV Base-M

Outside

**

Shinji had his Walkman sitting nicely in his bag, as he walked up to Misato, Asuka, and Rei. 

"All done then?" Misato asked.

"Yeah, I found it in my locker. I forgot I left it there, I'm glad the changing room was rebuilt here." Shinji looked off to the car. "Are... you driving?" He asked cautiously.

Misato looked at him in an annoyed fashion. "Don't insult my driving..." She walked to the car. "Well, come on then! We've got to go home and eat."

Taking their steps carefully, Asuka thought of a prisoner going to the electric chair. _Dead man walking... _Misato watched over all of them and grinned.

"As a reward for Shinji-kun doing well, I'm going to drive slow."

Instantly the dark mood lifted, even Rei appeared to speed up her pace. As Shinji got into the car, Misato bent down to his ear. "Well done, Shinji-kun." 

Mumbling some form of thanks, he got in not noticing the red head behind him growing more and more frustrated. As the car pulled off, she stared back at the base. _Shinji is really good at piloting... I've never beaten an Angel on my own without some help from him... I hate that at time... Am I so useless on my own...? _Rei angled her head at Asuka and saw the look of self-loathing the red head bore. Looking away quickly, she watched the scenery go by as they returned home. 

At that point, they passed a figure walking along the pavement, which focussed on the passengers, catching the eye of Rei for an atom of time. He stopped and looked back at the retreating car; convinced he had made a connection. 

"Well, I guess it's time to introduce myself..." He smiled good-naturedly, walking steadily to the NERV base. "I'm interested in knowing more about Ikari Shinji, piloting an Evangelion for the survival of the Lilim." Nagisa Kaworu mused, as he ran another hand through his grey hair. He peered through his hair to the wire-fence of the base. "Then there are those Lilim that fight, unknowingly, for the survival of the planet..."

**

NERV Base-M

Meanwhile

**

A dishevelled Naota left the main hangar of the base. _It's so huge inside! I got lost for a minute..._ He stared in front of him and saw Ninamori waiting for him, leaning against a long black limousine. 

"Well? What are you waiting for?" She asked.

"Wh... What?"" Naota replied, confused.

"Get in..." She opened the door.

__

Well, I have to get home somehow... Naota walked to the door, still keeping his hands inside his pockets, entering the vehicle. Ninamori followed him in, shutting the door as the limousine gently purred away. They were both silent until Naota realised something.

"I forgot to ask you... Did you land okay after I got into Canti?" He asked.

Ninamori chose to stare out of the tinted windows next to her as she spoke. "Yeah, he left me by the river..." What Naota couldn't see was her blush. _He also patted me on the head..._

Naota smiled, "That's good... I'm glad you were safe..." He too began to stare out of the window, not sensing her shock and quick glance at him. 

Hiding in the shadows of a nearby house, a woman was watching the limousine cruise down the street into the town. She smirked. 

"So... 'He' appeared earlier today... The Fraternity will be interested..." She put her goggles on. "I'll be seeing you soon Naota..." Haruko grinned as she started up her Vespa, crushing the small device from earlier in her hand. 

**

----------------

Author's Notes

**

About time I updated this, I'm going to combine the earlier chapters into longer ones, as having so many right now makes it a tad annoying to read. No time on this though since I need to change the HTML tags thanks to the new formatting system (the previous chapters were not affected as they were uploaded before the changes).

Anyways, hope you enjoy this one. 

- Jason


	14. The start of something unexpected

****

Secrets should never be forgotten…

Chapter 14

****

The start of something unexpected

Later that evening

Interstellar Immigration Headquarters

"So the core was destroyed then?" Amarao quirked an eyebrow, watching the replay of the battle on the main screen.

"Yes sir, it was based right behind the eye and was torn in two when Canti smashed through it." Kitsurubami was reading from a clipboard of the data they gathered after reaching the wreckage.

"I see…" He laid back in his chair, placing his arms behind his head, his eyes still hidden by his sunglasses.

I can't believe she defeated all my men… A memory flash of the style in which she shot at all his agents, eventually leaving only him left. _Just as I thought… _Another memory came to him, this time much older, of a guitar slamming into his face. _She's still the same, but scarier, and more dangerous…_

"...ir. Is there something wrong sir?" Kitsurubami asked, having heard nothing from him for the past minute or so.

"Hmm?" He angled his head to her. "Oh, sorry Kitsurubami, you're free to go…"

"Okay…" Walking away she looked back to him. _I wonder what's wrong with him… He's been like this since the fifth robot… _On the subject of robots she too thought of something. _Canti was really kind too… Did I… Did we misjudge him?_

7:12pm

Inside Mabase

"What?! I thought we were going out to eat!" Asuka screamed.

Misato looked to the food she was about to prepare, opening the microwave in the process. "You don't like my meals then?"

"Of course not! How could I like such uncultured food!" Asuka yelled again.

Shinji sighed, while he too didn't like Misato's cooking, he wasn't as upset as Asuka was. He was sure that Rei, with her vegetarian lifestyle, would not like the food either, though the pale girl didn't openly object and sat opposite Shinji, waiting for dinner.

"Well tough! This is all I can afford right now, so we'll be eating like this for a time until I get more money…" Misato groaned. _NERV is terrible… The wage doesn't show how good I am…_

"Misato-san… Asuka…" Shinji spoke up. "What about if I were to cook dinner, it would take longer but I could make something that everyone would like…"

They stopped and looked at him. "Are you sure Shinji-kun? You've had a tough day…"

Asuka grew a little darker at this comment, drawing away from the kitchen and sitting opposite the TV as they continued talking. Rei surreptitiously watched Asuka with her red eyes.

"It's okay Misato-san, I've got over it already." He turned to strawberry blonde girl, "What do you say Asuka?"

I'm a worthless pilot… I wasn't even asked to help Shinji today… She delayed her reply a few seconds, then sighed, lying back and putting her hands behind her head. "Do whatever you want…" She didn't even realise that the edges of her mouth curled upwards slightly, as she thought about the food that he would prepare.

Shinji, not seeing the tiny smile, still took it as a positive response, and lit up considerably. Misato relinquished and put the instant food back in the freezer. Shinji put on his usual apron, and looked to the table.

"Ayanami…" He paused, still unused to having her in the same house as him. "What would you like for food?"

Rei thought for a second, not wishing to inconvenience him with any extravagant request, not that she could think of any. Still not facing him, she answered. "I do not mind, so long as it doesn't contain meat."

"I remembered that." Shinji remarked, his buoyant mood ebbing as he grew more self-conscious. "I just… wondered if you had anything particular in mind, that's all…"

Misato moved over to sit besides Asuka, who shifted up further to the other side of the sofa, and turned on the TV using the remote. Shinji turned back to the kitchen and began to prepare the items needed to start cooking.

Rei looked to Shinji, having noted his reaction from the corner of her eye, and his slumped figure over the counter. "I would like to have some ramen."

However, sudden loud noise from the TV and the clattering of metallic utensils prevented her from being heard. A small frown crossed her features for a moment before she spoke again.

"Ikari-kun." His shoulders reacted, and she guessed that he heard her this time. Even Asuka and Misato watched her. "I would like some ramen."

Shinji seemed to grow taller as he faced her. "Really? I think I have enough for one person… Are you sure Ayanami?"

"Yes, I am sure." She turned away from him and looked in the general direction of the TV.

With that said and done, Shinji worked on preparing a meal for everyone, knowing what everyone preferred, and for once, enjoying his time making this meal.

8:13pm

Outside Mabase

The quiet of the empty road permeated the ravaged car, as it rattled along, the hubcaps and bumpers sellotaped loosely to their various joints, the back window smashed and covered with a dustbin bag. There was no illumination, bar the headlights and ambient light from Mabase. The driver was bored out of his mind.

Well, not really.

He couldn't stop thinking about that woman who changed his life so much. Resting his head on his hand, the other steady on the wheel, he began to drift back to those days. He soon came back to reality though, as the road ahead had light, a sign that someone was heading his way.

Moving the car further to the left, Amarao grew confused as the light apparently stopped, braking to a still. No taking any notice, he continued, till a thought struck him. _There's only one headlight there… Could it belong to her…?_

He soon found out though, as a large 'KERRANG' was heard, along with the crumbling of the road, creating a trench between them. One high-pitched scream, and the futile squealing of brakes, and his car plunged bonnet first into the abnormally large pothole, totalling it completely.

As the smoke began to grow from it, he crawled out in pain, his face covered in scratches from the crash. Placing one hand on the top of the ditch, and pulled himself up, only to face a pair of legs. Glancing up, his fear increased exponentially as the woman of his nightmares was standing right in front of him, grinning like a maniac, a crazed look in her eyes, with her trusty guitar by her side.

"You look good, Amarao-chan."

"Raharu…" He hissed between clenched teeth. "You did this…"

"So what if I did?" She carried talking down to him, both in the literal and metaphorical sense. "You are hardly worth my time talking to, even beating to death."

He began to get up, wiping off the dirt that accumulated on his clothing, lightly patting his chest to ensure that his pistols were safe.

"So, what do you want?" He began to tense his muscles.

She gave a cute smile, but keeping the sharp glint in her eyes, making it seem sinister and downright creepy. "A small favour…"

"I can give you many favours…" He jumped away from her reach and pulled out both his firearms. "But they all reside in these guns." He gave a hungry grin, his face contorting as he began to think of the ways he could kill her, and savour the victory.

"Oh?" A mildly surprised Haruko picked up her guitar and hefted it over her shoulder, the main body of it hanging behind her as she gripped the neck tightly. Her lips drew back to show her teeth, glinting and menacing at the same time. "I don't think you can… Amarao-chan…"

The view panned quickly up into the night sky, slowing as a gunshot echoed through in the darkness.

Meanwhile

NERV Base-M

A person walked up to the front gate, holding his bag over his shoulder. The guards noticed him and beckoned him to stop.

"Halt." One of them stated and walked towards him. "No civilians are allowed in this area."

The young boy looked up as the wind blew away the grey fringe that covered his penetrating red eyes. This made the soldier draw back from his gaze, disturbed by the colours of his eyes. Unwittingly he moved his arm closer to his weapon. Kaworu as usual could tell what the man was thinking immediately and shook his head lightly, sighing in a way that implied he was used to people acting strangely at his odd features.

"I have been summoned by the Commander, Ikari Gendo."

Another soldier started walking to the control booth, "I'll check to see -"

"There is no need." The stern voice of said Commander bellowed over the intercom. "He is the Fifth Child, send him in."

"R… Ryoukai…" The nervous trooper replied.

Opening the gate, Kaworu strolled in and was greeted by the disinterested but somewhat ill-looking Ritsuko, her Section 2 chaperones by her sides. "Follow me."

Their footsteps echoed in the now empty corridors, until they reached one with no lighting, an ominous black door ahead. Walking forwards, the door smoothly slid to the right with little sound, and the two (minus the agents) entered. The office was his traditional layout, a large room, with a dark blue feel to it, but little ambient lighting left the edges far too dark. The desk was actually higher here, so that the people standing at the entrance would need to speak up to him. The Commander was again holding the same position with his hand interlocked, covering the lower half of his face.

"I trust you are well." He stated, not making it a question to unnerve him, failing badly. "How was your journey?"

"It was…" He paused and thought to himself for the appropriate wording. "intriguing, shall we say. The town is small though, much more of a community feel to it than Tokyo-3."

"Indeed." Gendo tersely agreed, not really bothered about his impressions of either place. "You are aware of you living arrangements whilst in Mabase?"

"Yes I am." Kaworu complied, realising the time for fun was over.

"I suggest you go there to rest for the night. You will receive notification if anything happens." Gendo stared down at the grey-haired boy, only to find him giving a small smile beneath his fringe. Angling his head upwards, he returned the powerful look with one of his own, a hint of malice sharpening around the edges of his eyes.

"I guess I'll be on my way then…" He turned casually and walked off, still with one hand in his pocket, the holding his bag. Ritsuko was shocked by these apparent events of disrespect, turning with her mouth agape at the boy, turning back to Gendo, she received only one sentence for her trouble.

"You are dismissed Akagi Ritsuko."

Gritting her teeth, she quickly marched off out of the chamber, her two now permanently attached pair of agents moving by her sides again.

As the door closed, Gendo lowered his hands, rubbing the palm of the right hand carefully. _It appears that SEELE have played their trump card. An Angel in our midst… For now, nothing will happen, however we have no idea of what Medical Mechanica will do._

Elsewhere in Mabase

Shinji was in mute shock. Here he was, sitting next to Asuka on his left, and Rei to his right, Misato choosing the separate chair for herself. They were watching some mundane game show, but more for the reason of having something to do, as opposed to doing nothing and sitting facing one another.

He recalled the meal, all four of them sitting at the table eating. Asuka was unusually quiet, but voraciously gobbling all the food given to her. Shinji realised that when she didn't object instantly, she liked his cooking. Misato played with her food for a short bit, but ate all of it. _"I have to look out for my body, you know?"_ she said, patting her stomach lightly. How she could still say that despite her regular diet of alcohol and microwave food, Shinji couldn't figure it out. Rei probably gave him the biggest surprise of all. While he expected her to eat the food in complete silence, save for her muted chewing and slurping, and maybe her _"Thank you"_ at the end, he didn't expect the small compliment.

"It was very good."

He still repeated those words over in his head, not paying attention at all to the program. _Why did she say that? It's not like she says anything more than needed… Asuka's right, she only does things unless ordered to, so… could it have been an order?_

Continuing to doubt the obvious in his mind, he grew more insecure about why she said it. All the while, everyone was blissfully unaware of his turmoil, so much so that When Rei stated she was retiring for the night, he didn't notice her leaving until half an hour later.

"Anta-baka!" Hearing the familiar words, he returned to the surroundings and looked to his left, as the red head became exasperated.

"Didn't you hear what I just said?!" She half shouted. "I asked you a question!"

"Oh…" Shinji looked to her. "Sorry Asuka, I was somewhere else…"

"Mein Gott…" She mock-slapped her face and slammed her hand down on her lap. "What have I told you about saying sorry?!"

Shinji moved his upper torso back in case of a slap, still leaving enough room for Rei (he hadn't figured out she left a while ago). Noting his reaction, Asuka calmed down and took in a deep breath, letting it go to release her pent up frustration and fury. She slowly opened her eyes to face his. This time, hers were mellow and sympathetic, with no sign of the earlier temper.

"I'll say it again." She coughed. "What was it like fighting that…" She paused to get a suitable description. "… That hand?"

Shinji began to question why she asked that, instead choosing to think about his answer. "I… I don't know, it felt weird…" He thought about the battle again. "It was easy at first, but then it got harder… It looked like it was cleverer than the Angels were…" He looked to where Rei was, and furrowed his brow at her lack of presence.

Misato nodded, agreeing with him. Shinji continued. "It adapted to the AT-Field, and broke through. Then when it turned into that hand…" He stopped here for a second, trying to remember the pain he felt then. "I passed out…"

"Then Unit-01 went 'Berserker' again." Asuka ended his thoughts.

"I don't like this…" He held up his hands and peeled off the bandages there to reveal a small cut in both palms. "I shouldn't get hurt…"

Asuka hadn't seen this before, as he'd been keeping his hands away from her sight, in an inconspicuous way all evening.

"What?!" She grabbed one and stared at the horizontal line straight across the middle of the palm, and saw his fingertips were also raw. "That robot did this that time?"

"Yes…" Shinji recalled when it penetrated the At-Field, he grabbed the edge and tried to grip its surface. He also remembered the blood seeping out from his plug suit around his hands.

After seeing Misato eye her behaviour curiously, in the way she was still holding the hand, Asuka reddened, letting go quickly, 'hmphed' and crossed her arms. It only lasted for a second though as she spoke to the pilot in front of her with a worried look on her face.

"Will they heal?"

Was that concern for me? No, it couldn't be… "I… I think so… It just needs time." He clutched his chest. "I also have small burns here from that beam. It's healing quicker though…"

"They aren't normal…" Asuka said out loud. "How you can real cuts and burns inside Eva? Only pain should be sent to you…"

"I know…" Shinji gave a weak smile. "That's why I said it was weird."

At that moment the 'pin pon' of the doorbell sounded, which removed the temporary silence as Misato, hesitating for a few seconds, got up to answer it.

Moving into the corridor, she unbuckled the pistol in her holster, and kept a hand on it. Looking through the peephole, she could only see a silhouette, so took a small risk and opened the door.

"Who is it?" She asked.

"Good evening Major." The person walked closer and the first thing she saw was the smile as he moved closer. "I've been assigned to live here." Kaworu bowed his head a tad. "I am the Fifth Child."

9:03pm

Outside Mabase

The wind swept across the fields and over the road, blowing away the plumes of smoke and debris that had recently been created. There were two people on that stretch of tarmac, one standing, the other lying on his front in obvious pain.

"Why are you still so childish, Amarao-chan?" Haruko walked up to the prone redhead. "Even now you try to fight me, even though you've been beaten every time."

The aforementioned man looked up his eyes burning with hatred as he raised his left arm, the gun containing one bullet left.

"You're pathetic, you know that?" The gunshot followed a second later, the view showed both bodies stills from a distance, changing to that of above them. Haruko had stepped on his arm, skewing his aim and missing the target.

Amarao cursed his luck and faced down, waiting for death. Haruko stared down at the hopeless human, and lifted her foot, the heel with spots of blood from where she pierced his skin. She bent over and grabbed him by his collar, lifted him up and held him at arms length away, his feet not touching the ground. With blood dripping from his wounds, he managed to open one eye to look at her, unsure of what she was doing.

She sighed half-heartedly. "Despite everything I said, you do have some value in holding onto your life for just a little longer. Now… This favour…"

The night 'winked' around them, and the feeling of close proximity prickled her senses. An ominous sound echoed, and she looked around to see dark grey objects surrounding her.

"Who are you?" She stated, angry that she was interrupted.

The silence got on her nerves, so she dropped Amarao, leaving him in a crumpled pile, as she lunged at one, shattering it with her trusty guitar.

"I'll say it one last time." The snarl reached her face again. "Who are you?"

One of them spoke. "It matters not who we are."

She looked up and muttered. "SEELE? 01?" She smirked, "So you must be the leader. Sorry for killing your friend 05." As she motioned to the crumbled pieces on the road, her grin made it self-evident that she wasn't.

"What are Medical Mechanica?" 03 asked.

"Shut up. You're not important to me." She destroyed his monolith too; hearing mumbled panicked voices from the others. "You." She pointed to 01 with her guitar. "Interested about Medical Mechanica?"

A moment of silence and then, "Yes. They are affecting our… plans…"

"Plans?" Haruko arched an eyebrow. "What are you, some sort of secret government that rules the world or something?" The small gasps from some of the members confirmed her suspicions. "I've met loads like you, but they were all wiped out after Medical Mechanica was activated. One species wanted to help other races by living peacefully with them, a parasitic alien wanted to purify the universe of the disease that was other lifeforms, and another man wanted to recreate the world with his system, via the saturation of his world with sound." She shook her head. "All were destroyed. What are your plans?"

"I doubt you would understand, but I will tell you." SEELE 01 spoke again. "Instrumentality, the complementation of man"

Haruko was mildly surprised. "Oh, that old thing?"

This time, the uproar was such that they couldn't hold back their horror.

"What?! You mean there are others?" SEELE 08 shouted.

SEELE 11 joined in. "It has to be unique! No one else could have it!"

Promptly destroying those two columns, the other members mumbled to themselves, not wishing to be ejected from the conversation forcefully.

"How did you know?" SEELE 01 asked, genuinely curious.

"Why am I telling you anything at all?" She stalked towards SEELE 01, "I'm not telling you anything about Medical Mechanica, except that you will all be wiped out."

"We will eliminate Nandaba Naota if you do not co-operate with us." He spoke coldly. She stopped walking, and stared at the monolith with malice, steam emanating from her mouth as if she were a rabid bull. "We are aware of your interests with him and his… unique ability… to pilot that robot, and the link he possesses to Medical Mechanica."

"If you kill him, you will all be killed by me." She was in front of SEELE 12, and turned around her guitar so the neck was pointing at it, turning the dial on the back, she stuck it into the base of the monolith, electricity covering the connection.

"Wh… What are you doing?" SEELE 12 asked, terrified.

"Shut up." She retorted.

A small holographic window appearing above the strings of the guitar.

She smirked. "Hmm, central USSR, oh wait, it's not called that any more, interesting location. Must visit there one day…" The speaker behind SEELE 12 was outwardly shocked. "It's a shame that one of those rather lethal satellites with the custom made solar atomic beam is now going to vaporise it in, ooh," She glanced at her watch, "around 4 minutes…"

Removing her guitar, she looked to SEELE 01. "Well? What is it you want to know?"

"How do you know about Instrumentality?" He asked simply.

She shook her head. "Not much, except…" She held out a 'victory' sign. "Two things."

"What are they?" SEELE 01 persisted.

"Each time it was attempted, there were some ancient scrolls present." Sensing that they knew of it, she went on. "Not much is known about them, but they all were scattered in groups around the universe, hidden inside meteorites, most likely from a single long-dead planet."

"And the second?" Even Kihl sounded shocked by this revelation, wondering what else she could reveal.

She hesitated, knowing that this piece of news would unsettle them, so she wanted to remember their shock. "It has only been performed successfully once."

What she didn't expect was the utter silence. _They're scared now, that's good… _Her acute hearing picked up a high pitched whine. "Ahh, here it comes now." The sound was coming from SEELE 12. An almighty explosion followed, the sounds of debris scattering everywhere and more explosions resulting in the monolith flickering once, before vanishing from sight. "Guess there's only eleven of you left alive now, but just seven of you present." She looked to the leader. "What do I get in return for 'giving you' this information?"

"You get to live." He stated.

She gave another evil smirk. "Heh, I've probably outlived you a hundred times… And, as you can see…" She pointed to the prone body of Amarao, "I'm not that easy to kill…"

"Very well, we will also give you our guarantee that no harm comes to Nandaba Naota." He replied, the bare implication of a sigh present.

"Good boy." Haruko smiled.

"What do you want? I'm sure it's not just that."

Her face grew maniacal. "Power… Lot's of power… That's why I need Naota. He's the key to it…"

SEELE were listening, but fearful of this strange woman. The light blue Medical Mechanica monoliths that interrupted their meeting told them that this woman wanted something of their's, something that they weren't willing to give. Only now did her eccentricity reveal to them how dangerous she was.

"We have nothing more to say then."

At once, all the pillars vanished into the night, leaving Haruko looking a little bemused, but smiling at the blow she just dealt them. _Heh, it wouldn't be good to give all the truth just yet, now will it? _She stared down to the injured Amarao, still twitching from the fight. _Guess I'd better take him to a hospital… I'm not that heartless…_

Picking him up, she wondered off to her Vespa and sat down, Amarao on her lap. Giving him one more look, she put onh er goggles and exploded off down the road. Amarao, the wind searing his face, opened his eyes slightly. _SEELE? I thought that they were part of the Gehirn Project? And what is Instrumentality? _His vision grew fuzzy and he fainted from the pain, slumping his head down.

Meanwhile

Under a bridge in Mabase

Throwing some more pebbles into the river, Mamimi enjoyed the simple pleasures in life. Getting up, she began to walk home. _It's getting a bit cold out… I need to wash my clothes for tomorrow too… _Humming a tune to herself, she almost didn't notice the same overpowering sound until she looked up. There stood three monoliths, light blue in colour, surrounding her at even distances.

MMI spoke first. "We are here to guide you."

MMII, the female voice, continued. "Our guidance is absolute."

MMIII ended the short speech. "To disobey is to die."

Mamimi phased out, her eyes growing unfocused, a melancholic feeling passing over her. "Wh… Who are you?"

"Your Gods." MMI declared.

Mamimi, alone in her own world, fell to her knees, still giving a blank look at the first monolith.

"Your instructions are…" MMI paused. "To initiate contact with the individual known as Ikari Shinji." Mamimi nodded in earnest. "You will receive further instructions once you are acquainted with him."

She bowed low, her arms spread in front of her. "Yes, father."

"Good girl." MMI replied, and the three of them blinked out of existence.

Mamimi got up and looked up to see the stars, twinkling behind the gigantic factory. Sighing happily, she stood up and skipped off home. "Ikari Shinji… I wonder what he's like. Shin-kun…"

Author's Notes

One year since the last update, more apologies are necessary.

Chapter notes - The '-chan' suffix is traditionally used with young girls, but when Haruka uses it with Amarao, it's an insult, implying that he is more feminine (or likewise, lacks masculinity) than normal men.

The seeds have been sown, so the plot will now begin to really grow. Look out for it!

- Jason

PS - A cookie for those who recognised the scenarios that Haruko mentioned when talking to SEELE, shouldn't be too hard really…


	15. Introduction of foreign elements

**Secrets should never be forgotten…**

**Chapter 15**

**Introduction of foreign elements **

**9:30pm  
Mabase - Misato's home  
Entrance hall**

"He can't move in with us!"

Asuka was yelling again, leaving Shinji to nurse his battered eardrums. Rei was watching with apathy. Misato also frowned, rubbing her head from new headaches. Kaworu stood there, amused that he was being pointed at.

"If the Commander ordered it…" Misato said no more. "We'll have to rearrange the sleeping arrangements now."

Rei looked at Kaworu and narrowed her eyes, sensing an odd feeling emanating from him. He did the same, but already had the knowledge of the DNA present in her.

"I do not wish for him to stay in my room." Rei looked to Shinji, who shook from her stare. She could already tell that he wasn't best pleased with wanting to stay with her. She came up with a solution to please everyone. "I would prefer to reside with Pilot Sohryu."

This time, it was Asuka who paled. "Me… and Wondergirl? In the same room…?" Her eyes goggled as Rei walked upstairs back into her room and started moving her few possessions across. She was too stunned to object further.

Kaworu smiled. "Now that that's settled." They walked into the living room and he sat next to Shinji. "Looks like we're roommates for now."

"For now?" He asked, the changes still not registering properly in his head.

Kaworu exerted some power in his eyes, the red irises dangerously gleaming. His voice held none of his hatred back.

"This new enemy, Medical Mechanica, they're not Angels, they're on a different level entirely…"

Everyone sensed the truth behind the statement and were quiet.

"But… we'll still win, right?" Asuka chipped in, but was quickly brought down by his still angry stare.

"Against who? The Angels, or Medical Mechanica?" He shook his head. "The two enemies are fighting for opposite reasons, and humans are right in the middle."

Rei interjected. "Our job is to pilot the Evangelions and destroy the Angels. Nothing else matters."

Kaworu sighed and smirked at the same time. "If you're killed by Medical Mechanica before the next Angel attack, what then?"

"Then… We'll fight Medical Mechanica too!" Shinji stood up for himself. "If they're going to stop us from killing the Angels, then they have to be beaten as well!"

Kaworu widened his eyes, and gave a kind smile. "Yes… That's it, self defence… The only answer…" He leaned back into the sofa.

Misato had already taken a swig of her beer, her can appearing from random. "We have allies too… Remember, Shinji-kun?"

"Yeah… That robot, he really helped me when I was in trouble."

Kaworu sat up again. "Robot? What kind?"

"A really small one, I think Naota was piloting it."

"Huh? You mean that kid from school?" Asuka asked.

Rei nodded. "He was retrieved from the base that day. He was the projectile."

"Oh yeah…" She recalled seeing the red ball transform into something orange and gooey, then the prone figure of Naota.

Misato held up the can in assent. "The Commander had him interrogated, and we can unofficially call him an ally."

"What about the robot?" Kaworu asked again.

Misato raised an eyebrow, curious by his suspicious behaviour. "We don't know, it landed somewhere in the city and was lost. He seems to be a friend of that boy also."

"I suppose a little extra would help, especially if there are two enemies out there now…" Shinji mused.

Kaworu mulled over this new piece of information. _It is best not to take them lightly… _

**The next day  
7:25am  
Nandaba home**

Naota opened his eyes groggily, sifting through the multitude of images passing before his eyes. _Damn... What was that test? My head hurts... _Of course, he rubbed his scalp gingerly, afraid of any unnecessary prodding lest a horn pop up somewhere. Closing his eyes, he recalled odd rapid-fire flashes of strange memories, none of which belonged to him. _It all started in that plug thing... _Shaking it off, he stood up shakily and walked out into the bathroom, filling up a glass and returning to his room again. Picking up two pills from his drawer he popped them both his mouth and prepared to pour it all down his throat.

He stopped when he heard an unfamiliar groan behind him. Turning slowly, his cheeks bulging with liquid and two floating pills he noticed an arm drop down from the top bunk. Instantly, his body reacted dramatically, in trying to scream out in shock, he tried to breathe in, only for the water and pills to go down the wrong way. As his face reddened, he retched, and coughed harshly, forcing air and water to go down their correct pathways.

Thankfully, order was restored quickly, and his breaths came out loud and deep as his eyes widened staring closely at the pyjamas belonging to the arm. _They look like mine... _A huge pound impacted him. _Oh no...! _Lurching backwards he clutched at his skull as the N.O channels reopened for another incursion. A sharp horn starting emerging from his forehead, as he struggled to keep it in.

"Naota, what's wrong?"

The female form shifted behind him and held a hand on his shoulder. "Does your head hurt again? NERV won't know what hit them..."

Naota paled. _It's her... But why is she here? _

Spinning him around, she pressed her own forehead to Naota's and stared into his eyes at the same time.

"Doesn't feel like a fever..."

She smiled upon seeing his blush, which distracted them both long enough to prevent them from sensing or noticing the red and pink glittering lights that surrounded the connection of their skin. She pulled away and the lights vanished.

"Did you take your pills?"

Naota nodded dumbly, but finally regained the use of his voicebox, pointing at her maniacally. "W-w-why are you here!" She shrugged noncommittally. "What about your parents? What about everyone else at school!" He dropped his hand, dejected and tired from his tirade. "Dammit Ninamori..." He muttered.

The mayor's daughter sighed and picked up on his mood. "Look, I'm sorry I'm here, okay? It was late when I took you away from NERV, and your dad wanted me to stay." _Probably worried in case I was injured, he did try to pamper me a bit... _"Besides, you did save me..." She turned away to hide her growing blush.

Naota was taken aback, and felt bad about snapping at her. "I... I' m sorry too..." He pawed his feet on the floor, embarrassed. "My brain's a bit hazy today..."

"Because it isn't there?" She asked curiously, staring at an old x-ray of his head, and the gaping black hold where his brain was supposed to reside.

He gave her withering stare. "Thanks, Eri... I feel a whole lot better now..." He stomped the short distance away to his bed and sulked, lying on the bottom bunk staring at the underside of the top mattress.

Ninamori did blush this time at using her first name. She softly walked over and sat on the bunk, looking at him.

"You were out of it yesterday... You were really tired from being in NERV... Your dad slipped some sleeping pills in your drink to give you a restful night."

_Stupid dad... _He felt his head again, _Didn't stop those mad dreams though..._

Ninamori shuffled about and lay down next to him, as there wasn't that much room, the left side of her body was in constant contact with his.

"Do you forgive me, Naota?" She turned her head to look at him, her purple eyes becoming bordered with light tear globules. Her fingers accidentally brushed against his own, and he had to stare hard at the wooden panels above.

"O-of course I do! It's all my dad's fault anyway, he should've told me..." Naota liked the feeling of warmth being generated on his right side. "Does anyone else know?"

"Nu-uh." Ninamori shook her head. "So we'll keep this our little secret, again." She pulled at her chest, letting the clothing billow outwards, then down at she let go. "Thanks for lending me your pyjamas by the way."

Naota reddened, but covered it up by placing a pillow over his face. Peeking out from behind it, he recalled something. "I thought you said they were fake glasses?"

She sat up, pulled off her frames and lightly flicked at the plastic. "They're real, see?" She pushed them close to him, and he could tell due to the distortion of her face behind the lenses.

"Then why...?"

"Why did I lie at the play?" She gave a wan smile, which was directed inwards. "I don't know... Everyone sees me as the mayor's 'perfect little daughter'. Perhaps I didn't want anyone to think that I have a flaw like myopia... When you can't see far distances..." She added, noticing Naota's confused expression. She looked at the frames in her hands, she recalled spending a lot of time deciding which pair to get. "I have to keep up appearances..."

Naota watched her put them back on, seeing her neutral mask dissipate and her smile returned. "Why did you tell me the truth then? I could tell everyone..." He jokily boasted, but paused seeing her expression grow colder.

"I thought I could trust you..." She looked away as an ache grew within her, and a small throbbing in her head.

"I was only kidding!" He cried, waving his hands about. He got up too quick, and hit his head against the wood. Giving himself a few seconds for the pain to evaporate, he looked at her. "Come on, Eri, I won't tell, I promise." He held out his pinkie, which she accepted with her own.

Letting go, she gave him a friendly smile. "You're different to everyone else, Naota..."

"'cos of Canti?" He replied unenthusiastically, reminded suddenly of Mamimi.

"No... You're just different, and that's what I l-like about you..." She spoke faster to hide her brief confession. "I think someone at school mentioned that if you are comfortable with one person, you show them more about yourself that no one else knows. You know one of my secrets now, and I know some of yours, like your short PJs." She held out her arm to demonstrate.

"Hey, now cut that out!" He jumped up as she held her arm away from him, stepping backwards from him and skipping about the room.

"Well, you'll just have to stop me now, won't you?" She dodged his tackle and giggled, opening the door to the room and running down the corridor, Naota in hot pursuit, both laughing out loud.

Miu Miu glanced at them briefly before storing away the new piece of information away for later use.

Naota never realised that his FLCL horn had gone.

**10:23am  
Mabase hospital**

Rhythmic beeps chorused in the stale room. Soon the sole patient awoke, his eyelids flickering as he grew accustomed to the soft light.

"Sir? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, thanks Kitsurubami."

Amarao thankfully didn't have a breathing tube shoved down his throat, so he was able to speak okay. However the numerous bandages, one over his right eye, and even a cast on his left arm proved contrary to his statement.

"How did I get here?" He coughed roughly then flinched, feeling that one of his ribs was tender.

"Someone left you at reception…" Kitsurubami had pictures from the CCTV camera. "It was Haruko…"

"That bitch…" He thought back to the previous night. _Which reminds me… _"Kitsurubami… I need you to look something up for me."

"Okay, sir…" She was surprised at his sudden change of mood. She had a small PDA ready.

"I need all the information you can get on the Gehirn project, with references to SEELE." He gave her a stern look. "No one else is to know about this… Top secret."

Scribbling down everything, her brow furrowed. "Sir, are you sure this is necessary?"

"Yes…" He relaxed his head back onto the pillow, staring at the ceiling. "There's a link between them and Medical Mechanica…"

"'Them'?"

"Get to it… I don't know how time we have left before that brat lets out another drone…"

"Y-yes sir!" She saluted and left the room.

Amarao sat up gingerly, still feeling his chest creak and groan, as he looked out the window to see the plant towering over everything else.

"Raharu… I'll get you for this…" Coughing harshly, he reluctantly lay back down.

**Meanwhile  
NERV Base-M**

"What do you mean it disappeared?" Gendo demanded.

Maya swallowed hard, but kept her nerve. "We detected a small reading from the location of Nandaba Naota's home, however it vanished soon after it began peaking its peak."

"Peak? You mean it wasn't ready yet?"

Maya relayed her assumptions clearly. "No, it was magnitudes smaller than the previous robot. It's possible that whatever this enemy is requires some time in a smaller form, before being released from its holder from an as yet unknown stimuli."

"I see. Thank you Miss Ibuki. You are dismissed."

Saluting him, she left the office, leaving the ruler of NERV in solitude, which he took advantage of the sound and bug proofed room to voice his inner thoughts.

"It seems that this Naota will pose a problem for Instrumentality, if he keeps releasing more of these robots…"Gendo rubbed one of his hands tenderly. "If it gets too dangerous…"

"You kill him, and you'll have to deal with me…" Echoed a voice from a dark corner.

"Who's there?" He commanded, and stood up, one hand on a panel on the desk.

The figure moved forwards into the light, making his eyes go wider. "Y-you…" He pressed the panel and a pistol jumped up into his hand.

"You think that little toy is going to work on me?" The person flickered and appeared in front of him, slapping the gun away where it skittered on the ground. Gendo cradled his sprained wrist carefully.

"You won't get out of here alive…" He warned, but his wavering voice didn't hold much threat in it.

The black marble desk was smashed in two thanks to a well placed home run from a guitar. "Your Section 2 agents don't scare me, little boy." Haruko sneered.

"Then, what if Naota were to suffer an… unfortunate accident at school?" Gendo smirked back.

Haruko grinned. "I've been threatened like that before, but it won't work this time." She raised her guitar. "Maybe I'll go round and kill your darling son, the one you abandoned when he was a child so you could focus all your life on getting your wife back…" She continued seeing him pale. "No, he probably doesn't mean that much to you… Maybe that annoying bipolar redhead… Or that alcoholic guardian with parental issues… Or…" Haruko smiled and nodded. "Yes, I think that mute blue haired drone should go…"

Gendo began to panic for the first time since a certain plug activation sequence "Rei…"

Haruko chuckled. "She's the Pearly Gate, so naturally you value her life." She gripped the guitar tightly. "Maybe I'll destroy the last Skeleton Key you so cherish and hold close to you…" She stepped towards him.

"Wait…" Unused to being in such a position he didn't know how to calm her down. "I'll leave Naota alone… If you promise to let me continue with my plans."

"Why should I?" Haruko questioned. "What's in it for me? I can wipe them out in a second."

"Maybe you won't get what you want without my help…" Gendo had nothing left to back himself up, so he tried his last bluff.

She pondered this for a few seconds. "I doubt you have anything that could help me…" She sighed casually though, and lowered her weapon. "But you could be useful when 'he' comes."

"Who?" Gendo asked, foolishly it seemed as Haruko snarled.

"None of your business, stupid human." She levelled her half-lidded eyes at him. "You can keep your precious Children, and carry on destroying those Medical Mechanica robots… Until I say so otherwise… Or else you'll be interfering in my plans…"

"Fine…" He stood up and retained a bit of his dignity left. "Then we have a truce…"

"The enemy of my enemy is my friend…" Haruko smirked. "Your pathetic Instrumentality may work, but it'll stop what I want most of all… If you get in my way, you will all die…"

She stalked off into the darkness, and Gendo felt her presence leave his chambers. Sitting down at his seat, but noting he had no desk left to rest his elbows on, he lay back and thought.

_She is very dangerous… What does she want with that boy…? She even knew about my plans… How does she know?_

**Midday  
School playground**

"Man, that was some boring lesson…" Touji laid back against a tree.

"Tell me about it…" Asuka yawned. "I already know all that stuff…"

"Wow…" Shinji smiled. "I never thought I'd see you two agree on something…"

The two looked at each other, anger crosses flaring on their heads, but they both snorted and looked away in opposite directions.

"Hey look…" Kensuke muffled out in the middle of a sandwich. "Inchou is coming over…"

"Hi everyone!" She seemed chirpy, which made Touji open an eye to look at her. "Sorry it took so long, the teacher wanted to speak to me…" She sat next to Asuka, who shifted up a bit. "How long have we got?"

Shinji checked his watch, but Touji butt in. "We've got an hour left, you weren't gone that long…"

"Ah… that's good." A blush spread across her face momentarily.

"Umm, hi Ayanami…" Shinji spoke, gathering everyone's attentions.

"Is it permissible to sit here?" She asked, still standing up and looking down at them.

"Ah…" He quickly scanned everyone over but didn't want to refuse her, given they now lived together. "Sure…" He unconsciously patted the patch of grass next to him, and she knelt down there, her knees bent, and sitting on her lower legs.

The conversation ground to a halt once she arrived, but they soon picked it up again, though no one spoke to Rei, as they knew she would rarely answer in details, always giving monosyllabic answers. As they began to tuck into their meals, and Kensuke trying to steal and beg from Touji, Shinji noted that Rei wasn't taking out anything.

"Ayanami, don't you have a bento?" He was mildly concerned, and didn't want her to go hungry.

"No, I was unable to make mine this morning as there was nothing left." She looked to him, her expression as neutral as ever. "I shall be fine for today."

"But…" Shinji began an internal dialogue with himself. _I know that mum's inside her, but she doesn't act like her… This is Rei…_He remembered the Fifth Angel, and how she stepped in front of him to protect Unit-01 against the positron beam, and most of all her smile. _She's still the same person who saved me… _He held out his half eaten box of rice with some peppers and fruit on the side. "Here, I'm already full…"

"Ikari-kun, there is no need…"

"Please, take it Ayanami." He smiled nervously and began to sweat as the others quietened down and watched him. "I insist."

Accepting the container Shinji stuffed into her hand, she looked down and frowned at his behaviour. "Thank you, Ikari-kun." She picked up his chopsticks and began to eat slowly, savouring the simple taste of the rice and peppers.

**Meanwhile  
Inside the school**

A figure was sitting on the windowsill of the fourth floor, letting the musty breeze filter through his grey fringe, cooling his face somewhat. He watched the pilots and their friends sitting.

"Shinji…" Kaworu mumbled. "You don't know how serious your role is on this plane of existence…" He watched him blush as Rei took small bites of the meal she received. "Your power rivals that of the other…" He looked right and saw Naota and his friends chatting away by the school wall.

Kaworu sighed and looked up at the sky, the sun blazing down upon them. "Lilim are such confusing creatures, but it makes it fun to observe them…" He furrowed his brow and looked at the gate. _What's that odd feeling? _His eyes narrowed. "I see…" He stared down the new person to enter the arena, as he began to formulate plans for Complementation.

**At the school gates**

Looking around eagerly, the person spotted Naota and gave a small smile, but veered away from him, searching onwards, until spotting the pilots under the tree.

Shinji and Asuka looked up, seeing the new figure approach. _That's not the school uniform here… _Walking straight up to the Third Child, the person grinned.

Mamimi sat in front of him, placing her hands on his lap. "Hi Shin-kun…"

Toji and Kensuke were jealous, Hikari a little scandalised, Rei passive, whilst Asuka and Shinji blushed bright red, for different reasons.

"Ah… Umm…" Shinji was lost for words, but thankfully Asuka intervened, the anger cross pulsing dangerously.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING YOU CRAZY GIRL!"

---

**Author's Notes**

Last update was September 2nd, 2004, guess it was about time for this update.

From what I can tell, this is the first FLCL/Evangelion crossover, though there are two others in the Evangelion section. I hope to introduce some more MM robots, as well as incorporating things I like from the FLCL manga into play. I hope to shock you all with my interpretation of the final battles, fought on two fronts, all for the sake of one little blue planet.

I understand that my characterisation of Haruko is a bit cruel, but you will see the kinder side to her later, right now she's a little upset (think end of episode 6). More interactions with the different casts will take place too. Also, the scene between Ninamori and Naota may be too childish for some, but as they are kids, and less traumatised than the pilots, they deserve a bit of fun in their lives.

Enjoy!

- J


	16. Corruption and Contamination

**Secrets should never be forgotten…**

**Chapter 16**

**Corruption and Contamination**

**One second later**

"Wh-wh-what are you doing!" Shinji was using his hands very efficiently, sending his body back several metres, leaving a trail in the grass.

Mamimi wasn't startled in the least and took it in her stride, getting up slowly and walking over to him. "Nothing, I just want to get to know you better…" She sat next to him and leaned her head in close to look into his eyes deeply.

Shinji's heart was ready to leap out of his chest. _I don't think any girl has ever wanted to know me… Let alone get that close to me… _He stared over her shoulder to see the rest of group looking back at him with a variety of emotions. His male friends were wildly jealous, Hikari was blushing at the forwardness of the girl, Rei was painfully neutral, though her eyebrow did quirk upwards a fraction. Asuka was still red in the face, a combination of rage at the girl and Shinji for not pushing her off. Once she saw him make contact with her, she closed her eyes and turned away.

_What the… Are those tears? _He couldn't see any more, as Asuka's face was hidden by her red hair. He faced the strange girl. "Wh-who are you? How do you know my name?"

"My name is Mamimi." She smiled. "As for your name, I just know it, that's all…"

"R-right…" Shinji dug his feet into the earth and stood up. "Th-thanks, but I-I'd rather alone for now…"

"Oh, okay then…" Mamimi stood up too, making the Evangelion pilot pale. "I'll meet you after school then.

As she walked out of the gates, Shinji could only stand there, his jaw wide open and eyes glazed over. Taking several minutes to compose himself, he walked as if in a trance, back to his friends under the tree, flumping on the soft vegetation.

"Good on you Shinji!" Touji slapped him heartily on the back. "You're finally putting the moves on girls! We're proud of ya'."

"Suzuhara! Stop teasing him!" Hikari interjected, seeing an odd look on Asuka's face.

Kensuke nudged Shinji so much that he fell on his side, his head landing in Rei's lap. Panicking, he scrambled to get up and was glad to see that she hadn't reacted. "S-sorry about that Ayanami."

She said nothing, and merely continued eating the bento he gave her. Shinji turned, irritated, to his friends. "Look, I don't who she was, okay? She just randomly walks up to me and almost sits in my lap. What was I supposed to do?"

"Well…" Touji put a finger to his chin, looking in deep thought. "I know what I would do."

"Thanks… Last thing I want is a slap…" Shinji grinned inside at seeing him turn red and huffy.

Asuka turned to face Shinji, thankful that her emotional barriers had returned for the moment, leaving her features indiscernible. He looked at her, worried for her, and for himself. _I thought she would slap me… _

He scratched his head. "I wonder how she knew my name though…? I never saw her before." He looked around. "She wants to see me after school… Do you think I –"

"Lucky you Shinji, you've got a date!" Asuka cracked a superior smile, though it was twitching at the edges. "It's about time you got a girlfriend, I've had loads of boyfriends back in Germany."

She heard Touji mutter something about 'low quality goods' and 'being drugged to agree'. Screeching in rage, she picked up her bento and threw it over the tanned boy, and to top it off, sent her drink that way as well, splashing Kensuke and a bit of Shinji's trouser leg.

"What are you doing you psycho!" Touji cried back.

Eyes widening, Asuka got up and starting beating on him. Hikari chuckled lightly. _I suppose he did deserve that… _Shinji looked between them, torn between helping his friend, and his (now former) roommate. While still sitting, he reached a hand out and lightly caught Asuka's fist. She sharply turned back, her other fist ready to belt whoever did that.

Shinji flinched and held up his other hand to protect himself. Not received a crushing blow, he lowered his arm to see her staring down at him, her face confused. She lowered her fist tentatively and bit her lip. Shinji loosened his hold on her and gave a warm smile. "Hey, it's okay, don't kill him just yet…" His eyes wandered over hers. _She looks so sad, and hurt… _"H-He owes me money…" _What am I saying!_

Whatever it was, it worked for a second. Her eyes stopped baring their hidden emotions, a bit of sparkle returning to them. When she glanced down at Touji, looking up at her with anger and infuriation all over, she sniffed and closed her eyes, tiny tear globules forming. Pulling her wrist out of Shinji's hand she ran into the school.

The playground was a bit quieter as murmurs began to spread. Shinji looked despairingly after her. _What's wrong, Asuka?_ He saw the two stooges cleaning themselves up, Touji cursing under his breath. Hikari was hovering like he was earlier, deciding which friend to comfort or help. Electing to leave her fiery girlfriend alone for now, knowing that she needed her space, she sat back down and sighed to herself. _Another 'lousy boyfriend' mark for Touji… _She absently used her chopsticks to pick the remaining rice in her tray.

Rei was quiet during the outburst and fight, but chose this time to speak up. "Pilot Sohryu was upset."

Shinji made an exasperated expression for a second. _Ayanami really knows how to state the obvious sometimes… _"Yeah, she was. She's… a bit sensitive about a few things…"

Rei took it in and her eyes flicked to one of the upper floors of the school. "I believe you should search for her."

"Wha– Me!" Shinji was getting really confused now. _A-Ayanami is asking me to look after Asuka? _"Why?"

Rei took a sip of water from the bottle that Shinji gave her. "When Pilot Sohryu is around you, her mood is less volatile." Rei stared at him, her red eyes piercing into his soul. "You have a calming influence on those around you."

"Do… Do you really think I'd make that much of a difference? Just by being beside her?"

Rei looked at him straight. "Yes." She looked away, her vision focussing on nothing in particular, just over the wall into the sky.

Still waiting for her to go on, Shinji realised that she wouldn't move until the lunch bell rang again. Excusing himself, he dusted the green stains off his backside, but realised that it wouldn't be completely removed. He strode into the school, unsure of where to look for her.

**Five minutes ago  
Playground**

"Hey Naota, isn't that Mamimi?" Masashi knew not to call her his girlfriend, seeing that a Medical Mechanica robot appeared the previous time.

"Huh?" He looked up from his comic book. "Yeah, what's she…?" He sat there, mouth open, as he saw her basically jump on Shinji. He crushed the can of beer. "What the hell…!"

Ninamori was passing by, having spoken to some of her girlfriends. She noted the can in Naota's hand and followed his eyes to see what he was watching. _Or should I say, whom. _She plumped herself next to him. "Looks like Mamimi is moving on, Naota."

"Shut it, Ninamori!" He took a swig from the can, only to have the yellow fluid pour out through the new cracks he created over his sweater. "Aww, man! I just bought this last weekend!"

Ninamori rolled her eyes. "Come on, it's just a beer stain, I'll wash it for you in the changing room."

Naota blushed slightly. _What, she wants me to strip now? Weird girl… _He looked at her, still focusing on his ex. "Sorry, Eri… I didn't mean to snap…"

She tore herself away from the retreating Shinji and peered closely at him. "It's okay, Naota, I shouldn't've been so rude." She shrugged. "I know it's hard, but you have to move on, besides…" She jerked a thumb behind her. "Shinji definitely isn't interested, and looks more scared than anything."

Once Mamimi left the school, the noises from Touji and Asuka were heard. "Wow…" Gaku recoiled. "He got her angry! That's real stupid…"

As Asuka started throwing the food, they all nodded. "Oh yeah, way wrong…" Masashi agreed out loud.

Ninamori frowned when the strawberry blonde stopped when Shinji grabbed her, and then ran away. _I see… He's a bit thick really not to notice her affection for him… _She glanced at Naota, still reading his comic now that the entertainment left. _Well, maybe not 'that' thick if Naota's the same way… _

**Meanwhile  
Fourth floor**

_Contact has been made. _Kaworu stood up. _Now, it's only a matter of time before they stir up enough mental strife for… trouble… _He looked at Naota and Ninamori, examined her closely, his Angelic red eyes gathering more data than any human on the planet. Restoring them to their natural state, he scowled for a moment, pulling away from the window and walking out of the classroom.

"Hmm, she may be a problem, I hadn't anticipated another opening –"

He was sent into the doorway as someone barrelled into him, leaving him short of breath. _Lilim are too carefree sometimes… _He looked down and saw a girl on the floor, but he already knew her, the red synchronisation hair clips flashed in the sunlight.

"Sohryu-san, are you okay?" He asked, holding an arm down for her to get up.

Her shoulders were moving erratically. _Is she crying? _Asuka slapped Kaworu's hand away, and got up roughly, her elbows scraped on the loose tile. She rubbed one and her finger came back with a small streak of blood. Her fringe covering her face, she walked by Kaworu, who offered to help her.

She shook her head lightly, her voice growing unsteady. "Please…" She went off toward the direction of the girls toilets.

He stood there, his mouth a thin line. _Her instability is growing… Arael may have overdone his work… If this continues, her sync ratio will never rise again, and maybe… _Kaworu shifted his eyes right, to the window.

He moved away from the door and was going to the stairs to reach the roof when someone else nearly bumped into him.

"Ah Kaworu-kun…"

He smiled. "Hello Shinji. What's the matter, why are you running?"

"I was looking for Asuka, do you know where she's gone?"

Kaworu gave his honest look and pointed down the corridor. "I believe she went into the ladies toilets." He stopped at seeing Shinji blush a bit. "Why was she crying?" _I can guess from her reaction… _

"Touji opened his mouth too early…" Shinji chuckled. "A-Ayanami said I should find her."

"Well, she's down there, you can wait outside, she should be out soon…"

"Th-thanks Kaworu-kun." Shinji smiled. "I'll see you in class."

"Bye Shinji." He watched the Third Child walk towards the toilets, and lean against the wall by a class. Turning away, Kaworu walked upstairs, having no need to eat any form of food thanks to his core.

**Five minutes later**

Shinji was getting worried. _She's not out yet… _He went to the door and slowly opened it up. "A-Asuka?"

"Sh-Shinji!" Her voice was a bit clipped. "Wh-what are you doing! This are the girls toilets!"

"I-I know! I was just…" _What was I doing? _"I was… looking for you, to see if you were alright…"

He heard a splash of water and grew red. "Y-you can come in, no one's here…"

He did so, and saw her face was wet, the cheeks were a tad puffy, but her eyes were normal. "I needed to wake up a bit, so some water on my face helps me…"

She winced and Shinji drew closer. "What's wrong, are you hurt?"

He saw her cradle her right elbow. "Umm… sorta… I bumped into Kaworu in the corridor and fell bad…" The blood was seeping slowly out of the open cut.

"Let's see that…" Shinji wasn't used to blood, even after all those battles in Unit-01. He frowned. "It looks painful…" He touched it lightly and was rewarded with a gasp from Asuka, and a light punch on his right side.

"What did you do that for!" Her anger cross pounded in time with her heart, as Shinji's slowed at seeing her fury.

"Sor-" He shook his head. "I mean… I was checking…" He pulled her left hand. "We have to take you to the nurse… She can put a plaster on it or something…"

"Ah." She let herself be dragged by Shinji, before she jerked her hand out of his gentle hold. "Quit it! I can walk there on my own!"

"O-okay…" Shinji stammered. "At least let me walk with you…"

Asuka looked at the hopeful expression on his face, and she breathed out an annoyed breath. "Fine, whatever…" She did however slow down to allow him to walk beside her. She watched him from the corner of her eyes, seeing the trousers now had a darker colour in a certain area. "Sorry I spilled my drink on you, Shinji."

"Ah… It's okay, really." He laughed it off. "Just some juice, I can wash it out later." He looked close at her. "Are you sure you're okay?"

They both knew that this time, the mental state as opposed to the physical was being referenced. "I-I'll be fine…" She turned away, not wanting to recall those memories again.

The two walked close together as they tried to find the medical room.

**Meanwhile  
Streets of Mabase**

Inside a customised van, Kitsurubami began her orders, logging on to the Information Network, formally known before Second Impact as the Internet. The IN speed had vastly improved thanks to that generation's technology, surpassing all known broadband speeds of the pre-Impact years.

Her fingers flew over the keyboard. "So, he wants me to look up GEHIRN, with any relation to SEELE…"

Accessing the global search database, after inputting her priority level from the Interstellar Immigration, she started.

**NERV Base-M  
Five minutes later**

"You wanted to see me Commander?"

"Yes, it appears that someone is attempting to hack into MAGI, we need you and a team of Section 2 agents to eliminate the threat."

"Why me?" Misato raised an eyebrow.

"The person is located in Mabase, and is currently on the move." He smirked. "I believe you will be able to track the perpetrator down quickly and efficiently."

"Roger!" She saluted him and left the office.

Gendo readjusted his glasses. _SEELE must be worried if someone could access top level files. By ordering her to kill this person, we stop the worries of the old men… _

He frowned as he looked down at his desk, now repaired, but the scar in the flooring could not be removed.

_That woman… What is she doing now?_ He rubbed his hand. _How did she know? All my secrets…_

He waited for the expected confirmation from Section 2.

**Five minutes later  
Mabase**

Kitsurubami was a master of multitasking, which was how she managed to type and drive at the same time. Her eyes had widened a while ago from the information she had gathered.

"Wh-what is this?"

She was currently staring at a picture of the visor wearing Kihl, the scant knowledge of his profile displayed next to him.

"SEELE created GEHIRN and NERV?" Her history was muddled from what she knew. "I thought it was the UN… There's almost nothing on this group... Except…"

There was one line, recently appended, on a sole page on the IN, which brought her attention up.

"_MK, SEELE using NERV for Human Instrumentality Project."_

"Not only did it mention the two departments, but something new…" No matter how many times she changed the wording, she could find no more information on the project. "What could it mean?"

Her hearing picked up the sound of screeching tyres. Looking in the wing mirror she saw a speedy blue car and black van tailing her.

"Uh-oh…"

Shifting gears, she drove through the red light, and crossed the intersection, wary of the fact that they did the same.

Glancing at the van she saw the side door open as it approached her, and men in black suits began pulling out weapons. They started shooting.

"Shit!" She swerved left and barged the van away for a short time. Even though her windows and door were bullet-proof, she didn't want to take any chances.

Cutting into heavy traffic she pulled away into a side alley, and smirked as the larger van couldn't get through. Her smile disappeared once she saw the car chase her regardless.

"This is one tough person…"

As the walls closed in further, the only way out leading to a street full of cars, she put her foot on the accelerator, held her hand on the horn and closed her eyes, praying to whatever God could save her. As her van bounced off a small bit of debris, she left the ground for scant seconds, ready to plunge into the horrified civilian drivers.

However, something stopped her.

Opening her eyes, she recognised the angel that had saved her.

"Y-You…"

The thin blue figure lowered the van gently in a space large enough for it.

"Canti…"

She blushed momentarily, as she realised she was still in danger. As the van was now gridlocked, she grabbed her weapon and leaped out the van, in case they had heavy artillery.

The blue car stopped at the end of the alley, and the occupant opened the door, holding the pistol straight ahead.

"Surrender now!" Misato shouted, both hands shaking from her exciting drive. Her adrenaline was still pumping making her breath faster.

"Who are you?" Kitsurubami shouted from behind her bullet-proof door, as the normal citizens began to scream and run away from the two crazy women.

Misato bit her lip, she wasn't expecting the person to resist so much. _There's no way I can just kill a person, even if I'm ordered to… _"Throw away your weapon, or else I will fire!"

Kitsurubami analysed her options, which were few. Though she could make a break for it, she doubted she could outrun a bullet, and the street was closed off, the only way out being where Misato was.

_Why is she chasing me? _

"Three!" Misato cried, she could see the leg of the person beneath the van, a tanned one that belonged to a woman. "Two!"

Again, the blonde haired woman began to think. _Why give me a time limit? Am I in danger? _She looked down and swore as part of her leg peeked out from the safety of her door.

"One!"

She pulled it back fast as the bullet rang out, pinging off the metallic surface. Cursing to herself Misato got up and started running forwards. _Now that she knows I'm shooting to kill, she'll try to do the same…_

Gripping her gun tighter, Kitsurubami recalled the training from her officers and was ready to tumble sideways from her barrier to immobilise the person.

Misato got up onto the bonnet of a car and jumped into the air, the sun behind her giving an advantage. Kitsurubami took this moment to kick off the ground and roll to her right, away from her shield, and looking briefly for her attacker before spotting her shadowed in the sun.

They levelled the guns at each other.

Simultaneously, they pulled their triggers.

---  
**Author's Notes**

Short one for now, but writer's block hit me and I wanted to finish what I could before moving on to a different story.

Hope you enjoy! Reviews appreciated.

- J


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